Brown-gray wooden owl

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Brown-gray wooden owl
Lithophane furcifera.jpg

Brown-gray wooden owl ( Lithophane furcifera )

Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Butterflies (Lepidoptera)
Family : Owl butterfly (Noctuidae)
Subfamily : Xyleninae
Genre : Lithophanes
Type : Brown-gray wooden owl
Scientific name
Lithophane furcifera
( Hufnagel , 1766)

The brown- gray wooden owl ( Lithophane (Lithophane) furcifera ), also known as the dark gray alder bark owl , is a butterfly ( moth ) from the owl butterfly family (Noctuidae).

features

butterfly

The wingspan of the moth is 42 to 48 millimeters. The color of the forewings varies from slate gray to dark gray-brown. Sometimes they are lightly dusted pink or purple. A narrow white-yellow lightening can be seen at the wing root. The kidney defect is large and mostly reddish brown. Ring and tenon flaws stand out less clearly. The same applies to the transverse lines. More noticeable are a black root welt and a black longitudinal line below the kidney blemishes. The wavy line is dark brown. The hind wings are gray-brown without drawing. The proboscis of the moths is well developed. The antennae of the males are ciliated. There are upright hairs on the head, thorax and abdomen.

Egg, caterpillar and pupa

The hemispherical, yellow-white egg has strongly wavy ribs and two red spots in the middle zone.

Young caterpillars are green in color and show white longitudinal lines and equally colored point warts. Adult caterpillars are mostly dark brown with some light drawing elements.

The doll shows a two-pointed cremaster on which there are some bristles.

Similar species

The gray wooden owl ( Lithophane (Lithophane) consocia ) is a little more colorful and contrasting in color. The white-yellow field at the root of the forewing is wider. The wavy line is usually whitish. Ring and kidney defects are outlined in light inside.

distribution and habitat

The species is native to large parts of Central Europe and has been detected to the east as far as the Black Sea region , the Caucasus and western Siberia . In the mountains it rises to 1,800 meters. The brown-gray wooden owl is mainly found in alder and birch moors, floodplain areas, swamp forests, riverside areas and parklands.

Way of life

The moths fly in one generation from August. They hibernate and live until June of the following year. In spring they were occasionally observed sucking on willow blossoms ( Salix ). They are nocturnal and sometimes fly to artificial light sources , especially when baited . The caterpillars live from May to July. They prefer to feed on the leaves of the following deciduous trees:

Danger

The species occurs in different numbers in the German federal states, but is classified as not endangered on the Red List of Endangered Species . The dark subspecies Lithophane furcifera suffusa was endemic to Great Britain and has not been seen there since 1959.

Systematics and taxonomy

When the genus Lithophane is subdivided into the two sub-genera Lithophane and Prolitha , L. furcifera is placed in the sub-genus Lithophane . This subdivision is preliminary and is based mainly on differences in the morphology of the caterpillars.

swell

literature

  • Lázló Ronkay, José Luis Yela & Márton Hreblay: Hadeninae II . In: Michael Fibiger, Martin Honey (Ed.): Noctuidae Europaeae . tape 5 . Entomological Press, Sorø 2001, ISBN 87-89430-06-9 (English).
  • Günter Ebert (Ed.): The butterflies of Baden-Württemberg . 1st edition. tape 6 . Moth IV. Noctuidae 2nd part. Ulmer, Stuttgart (Hohenheim) 1997, ISBN 3-8001-3482-9 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Lázló Ronkay, José Luis Yela & Márton Hreblay: Hadeninae II . In: Michael Fibiger, Martin Honey (Ed.): Noctuidae Europaeae . tape 5 . Entomological Press, Sorø 2001, ISBN 87-89430-06-9 (English).
  2. ↑ a b c Walter Forster , Theodor A. Wohlfahrt : The butterflies of Central Europe. Volume 4: Owls. (Noctuidae). Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung, Stuttgart 1971, ISBN 3-440-03752-5 .
  3. ↑ a b c Günter Ebert (Ed.): The butterflies of Baden-Württemberg . 1st edition. tape 6 . Moth IV. Noctuidae 2nd part. Ulmer, Stuttgart (Hohenheim) 1997, ISBN 3-8001-3482-9 .
  4. ↑ Manfred Koch : We identify butterflies. Volume 3: Owls. 2nd, expanded edition. Neumann, Leipzig / Radebeul 1972, DNB 760072930 .
  5. ↑ Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (Ed.): Red List of Endangered Animals in Germany . Landwirtschaftsverlag, Münster 1998, ISBN 3-89624-110-9 .
  6. ↑ ukmoths: The Conformist Lithophane furcifera

Web links

Commons : Brown-gray wooden owl  - Collection of images, videos and audio files