Their status as a pest of apple orchards has led to many research projects aimed at controlling populations of the moth.

[1][2][3] Synanthedon myopaeformis is native to north Africa, western Asia, and Europe, where it is known as the red-belted clearwing moth.

[5] Pupae are around 1.5 cm long,[8] and are golden brown with two tubercles, short projections, protruding from their heads.

[7] Because the life cycle of the moth is dependent on host trees, S. myopaeformis is found predominately near apple orchards.

Eggs are laid singly on the bark of host trees, typically in cracks or damaged areas of the trunk and branches.

Larvae repeat this feeding – wintering cycle once more before emerging and boring a final hole in the bark in which to pupate.

[7] In 2014, Judd and Eby found that S. myopaeformis does not discriminate between yellow, green and white or between purple, blue, red, and black.

In 1999, Shehata, Nasr, and Tadros found that significantly fewer adults emerged from cocoons after larvae were exposed to the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis.

This chemical alone is enough to attract males, although the females do also produce secondary sex pheromone in addition to 3,13-octadecadienyl acetate, these appear to play a minor role.

[15] Native to Europe, Asia, and northern Africa, but recently released in Canada and the United States, S. myopaeformis has been recognized as a significant threat to apple trees in these regions.

One method of reproduction control involves the release of the S. myopaeformis sex pheromone into orchards infested by the species.

The traps enable monitoring of infestations even when the population is low, and so are an effective reference to determine the best time to apply pest-controlling measures or plant growth regulators.

A Hungarian study found that both male and female red-belted clearwings are attracted to a combination of pear ester and acetic acid.

[1] Diverse materials have been used to coat the bark of apple trees in an attempt to kill S. myopaeformis eggs and larvae.