Brown Pasture Looper

Brown pasture looper (Ciampa arietaria) are grey or brown, with black and cream stripes. Young caterpillars walk with a characteristic looping motion but can remain motionless, appearing to be part of the plant. When the caterpillars reach full size at 40 mm long they cease to walk with this looping motion. Brown pasture loopers are early-season pests of broad leaf pasture, lupin and rape crops. They chew the leaves of these crops and attack often occurs on the edges of crops, when these caterpillars move into the crop from adjacent pasture.