Caterpillars on tomato leaves!

[marchogaeth]

I think I've got these Bright-line Brown-eye Lacanobia oleracea - UKMoths .

[mr.tom]

November 2015 issue:-Garden pests

Tomato caterpillar pest.
I had seen lots of holes in the leaves of my tomatoes so I collected some of the tiny green caterpillars and reared them in a jar and fed with tomato leaves. The tiny caterpillars grew and grew eventually to about 40mm. I had put a little garden earth in the bottom of the jar and at this size they stopped feeding and disappeareared into the earth. Once I had eventually identified them I was surprised to see that the book says they will overwinter a pupae and emerge next Spring. 'Mine' emerged only some weeks later and were photographed (picture attached). Identification was difficult due to the wide variation of colour. 'Mine' had a quite dark background colour but the illustration in 'Colins Complete Guide---' shows a very pale one. Nevertheless I am now sure they are 'Bright-Line Brown-eye' and (surprise, surprise) they are also known as 'tomato moth'.
(I've not used this Forum before and I'm not sure if the picture attached ; if it did not perhaps some replyer could tell me and tell me how to attach. I clicked on the 'attach' icon ansd when a page came up I dragged my file into it but could see no 'click option' to send)
Try this instead (insert image)----seems to work

[veggiechicken]

Hi Mr Tom. I've moved your post over to the original thread where we were discussing these caterpillars and you told us you were going to try to rear some
Glad you succeeded and have confirmed some of our earlier thoughts about their identity.

[marchogaeth]

Hi Mr Tom. I've moved your post over to the original thread where we were discussing these caterpillars and you told us you were going to try to rear some
Glad you succeeded and have confirmed some of our earlier thoughts about their identity.

Squish, squish.

[Bill HH]

I have suffered these creatures for 4 years now, on this forum a couple of years ago we established that they were indeed the bright whatsit names, I am proud or just lucky to have beaten them this year by no other method than constant vigilance. I do have the time, being retired and I certainly needed it just keeping 9 plants free of them. One of their nastier habits is to just munch a chunk out of a tomato, enough to ruin it, then move on to another one (green or red).

[marchogaeth]

^^^^ if one of these is munching a tomato, Bill, how different - or not - does that look to a slug munch? I'm thinking one or two might be out there doing damage now that I thought was shy slugs!

[Nicos]

Good to see the final outcome!...thanks for sharing

[Bill HH]

^^^^ if one of these is munching a tomato, Bill, how different - or not - does that look to a slug munch? I'm thinking one or two might be out there doing damage now that I thought was shy slugs!

I think the caterpillars tend to make a hole in the tomato and the bore in through the hole and eat from inside, they do some damage but then come out and move on. There are always lumps of poo around often big like mouse poo (as has been said).These things grow quite large and plump yet remain very hard to find, they lie along the centre spines of leaves in the day and you can look several times before suddenly seeing it quite clearly. So I would think if you can see no turds your damage is more likely slugs. As I have mostly stripped the leaves off, their little bowell movements probably fall onto the potting compost, maybe some white paper under there would show this up.