Swallowwort Mute Owl

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Swallowwort Mute Owl
Abrostola asclepiadis.jpg

Swallowweed Mute Owl ( Abrostola asclepiadis )

Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Butterflies (Lepidoptera)
Family : Owl butterfly (Noctuidae)
Subfamily : Plusiinae
Genre : Abrostola
Type : Swallowwort Mute Owl
Scientific name
Abrostola asclepiadis
( Denis & Schiffermüller , 1775)

The swallow root owl ( Abrostola asclepiadis ), also called swallow root owl, is a butterfly ( moth ) from the family of owls (Noctuidae).

features

butterfly

The moths reach a wingspan of 29 to 38 millimeters. The yellow-brown root field stands out clearly from the brown basic color. This can sometimes take on a pink tint. The flaws are outlined in black. The fringing area is slightly lightened and contains thin, black veins that are characteristic of the species. The black outer transverse line, which ends almost perpendicularly on the front edge, is also characteristic. The hind wings are brown-gray without drawing. The body of the butterfly is furry and hairy. There is a clearly erect tuft of hair on the head, followed by a few shorter ones on the abdomen.

Caterpillar, pupa

The very distinctive caterpillars are bluish white in color and provided with a multitude of small black dots. A wide yellow side stripe is noticeable. It resembles some caterpillars of the genus Shargacucullia , for example those of the mullein monk ( Shargacucullia verbasci ).

The doll shows several curved bristles on the wrinkled cremaster .

Similar species

  • In the dark gray Nettle looper ( Abrostola triplasia ) outweigh dark gray color elements. It has narrower forewings and a mostly ocher-colored root field. The outer transverse line joins the inner edge at an acute angle.
  • The silver- gray nettle-humped owl ( Abrostola tripartita ) has a contrasting gray-brown to silver-gray basic color. The black veins in the apex usually form dark apical spots on both sides of the wavy line. With a wingspan of 27 to 35 millimeters, tripartita is one of the smaller of the abrostola species compared here .
  • Abrostola agnorista shows narrower forewings, is overall more monotonous dark gray and has a light brown root field. The butterflies are missing the black veins in the border area.
  • Abrostola clarissa is smaller in overall appearance and much paler brown-gray in color.
  • A confusion with the somewhat lighter colored species Abrostola canariensis can be ruled out insofar as it occurs only on the Ilhas Selvagens archipelago and on the Canary Islands , which do not belong to the habitat of asclepiadis .

A genital morphological examination can also be carried out in order to obtain an unequivocal result during the determination.

Since the asclepiadis caterpillars differ significantly from those of the other Abrostola species, a clear allocation is possible through breeding.

Distribution and occurrence

The species is common in southern and central Europe. It is also found in northeast Turkey , the Caucasus, and Transcaucasia . In the Alps it rises to heights of around 1500 meters. It inhabits mainly warm and dry areas, for example sunny slopes, forest edges, stony heaps and wasteland.

Way of life and habitat

The swallowweed hump owl is a crepuscular and nocturnal butterfly that flies from May and September. He visits artificial light sources , but only occasionally bait . Sometimes it can also be found sucking on flowers. The caterpillars feed on swallowweed ( Vincetoxicum hirundinaria ). They have succeeded in adapting to the toxic secondary phytonutrients. The very conspicuous color of the caterpillars can be seen as a warning to indicate their toxicity. The species overwinters in the pupal stage.

Danger

In Germany the species occurs regionally in different numbers, is mostly rare and is included on the red list of endangered species on the warning list.

swell

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ 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 (English).
  2. ^ A b 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. ↑ Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (Ed.): Red List of Endangered Animals in Germany . Landwirtschaftsverlag, Münster 1998, ISBN 3-89624-110-9 .

literature

  • 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 .
  • 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 (English).

Web links

Commons : Swallowwort Hump Owl  - Collection of images, videos, and audio files