Azure Hawker vs Codling Moth

Aeshna caerulea compared with Cydia pomonella

Key Differences

• Azure Hawker is Least Concern while Codling Moth is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Azure Hawker	Codling Moth
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Odonata (Odonata)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Aeshnidae	Tortricidae
Genus	Aeshna	Cydia
Species	Aeshna caerulea	Cydia pomonella

Evolutionary Relationship

Azure Hawker and Codling Moth share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

Azure Hawker

LC — Least Concern

Codling Moth

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Azure Hawker	Codling Moth
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Azure Hawker

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Norway and Sweden.

Codling Moth

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Europe (6 countries), and North America (Canada, United States).

Azure Hawker

The Azure Hawker (Aeshna caerulea) is a species in the genus Aeshna. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Codling Moth

The Codling Moth (Cydia pomonella) is a lepidopteran pest in the family Tortricidae, recognised globally as one of the most economically damaging insects affecting apple, pear, and walnut orchards. Adult moths have a wingspan of approximately 15–22 millimetres, with forewings patterned in grey and bronze, featuring a distinctive dark ocellate marking at the wing tip. Females lay eggs singly on fruit or foliage; hatching larvae bore directly into developing fruit, feeding on seeds and the core, creating characteristic brown frass-filled tunnels. By the time infestation is visible externally, significant damage to the crop has already occurred. Originally native to Eurasia, Cydia pomonella has established itself on every continent where pome fruits are cultivated, including North America, South America, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, facilitated by trade in infested plant material. Management relies on integrated approaches combining pheromone-based mating disruption, timed insecticide applications, kaolin clay barriers, and biological control using entomopathogenic nematodes and the granulovirus CpGV. Resistance to organophosphate and pyrethroid insecticides has developed in some populations, complicating conventional chemical management. The species undergoes 1–3 generations per year depending on climate. Despite its pest status, Cydia pomonella is not conservation-evaluated.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden