Dark gray nettle-humped owl

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Dark gray nettle-humped owl
Dark gray nettle-humped owl ( Abrostola triplasia )
Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta) Order : Butterflies (Lepidoptera) Family : Owl butterfly (Erebidae) Subfamily : Gold Owls (Plusiinae) Genre : Abrostola Type : Dark gray nettle-humped owl
Scientific name
Abrostola triplasia
( Linnaeus , 1758)

Abrostola triplasia from above

Abrostola triplasia caterpillar

The dark gray nettle-humped owl ( Abrostola triplasia ) is a butterfly from the family of the owl butterflies (Noctuidae).

features

Abrostola triplasia can easily be confused with other Abrostola species, such as the swallowweed hump owl ( Abrostola asclepiadis ) or the silver-gray nettle hump owl ( Abrostola tripartita ). The caterpillars of the similar species can be easily distinguished from one another. The moths of Abrostola agnorista can usually only be distinguished from Abrostola triplasia by genital examination .

The butterfly has a relatively narrow fore wing, which is why it looks rather slender. There are no or only very thin black wire lines in Saumfeld in dark gray moths exist. The fringing area is of the same basic color as the middle area in the upper area, otherwise it is dark slate gray to medium gray, in the lower part yellowish interferences can occur. The basal field, on the other hand, has a distinct yellow interference. The flaws are outlined in black or not at all. The transverse line, which is clearly curved in the lower part, ends at an acute angle at the inner edge .

distribution

Abrostola triplasia is the most common species of the genus Abrostola . The distribution area extends from Morocco to Japan . An exception are subarctic areas with an annual mean temperature of below 6 ° C. In the warmest and driest regions of the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the xeromontane mountains of West and Central Asia, the species is only scattered or absent.

Way of life

The very common moth forms two generations per year, which fly from mid-April to September, sometimes even into October. The caterpillars only eat nettles and rarely also hops . The species overwinters as a pupa.

Systematics

There is confusion on various websites and in some literature about the genus Abrostola , as both the silver-gray Abrostola tripartita and the dark gray Abrostola triplasia were represented under the name "Phalaena Noctua triplasia" in the Linnaeus collection , which is why the dark gray Abrostola species 1864 in A. trigemina was renamed. A meticulous analysis of Linnaeus 'material by Mikkola & Honey in 1993 made it possible to determine which specimens of the Abrostola species originate from Linnaeus' time and which were later added to the collection. As a result, the current name Abrostola tripartita prevailed for the silver-gray species and the original name Abrostola triplasia for the dark gray species from the mid-1990s .

Individual evidence

1. ^ Lepiforum , Abrostola triplasia
2. ^ Butterfly caterpillar , Abrostola triplasia
3. ↑ Barry Goater, Lázló Ronkay, Michael Fibiger: Catocalinae & Plusiinae . In: Martin Honey, Michael Fibiger (eds.): Noctuidae Europaeae . tape 10 . Entomological Press, Sorø 2003, ISBN 87-89430-08-5 , p. 168 (English).
4. ^ Lepiforum , Abrostola tripartita

Web links

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