Theretra alecto
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Theretra alecto , Moth |
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| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
Theretra alecto is a butterfly ( moth ) from the family of moth (Sphingidae). The second part of the scientific name, the specific epithet , is derived from Alekto ( Ἀληκτώ "who never stops"), a goddess of Greek mythology . The range of the species covers large parts of the southern Palearctic and the Oriental . The caterpillars feed mainly on vines ( Vitis ) and parthenocissus ( Parthenocissus ) and may cause at some places to observant mass occurrence in agriculture damage.
features
butterfly
The moths have a wingspan of 75 to 106 millimeters. They have brown-colored forewings with a fine, sloping, dark submarginal line from the inner edge of the wing to the wing tip (apex). The hind wings are predominantly pink in color, basal they are black and in the anal corner they have a white spot. The color varies depending on the environmental conditions encountered by the caterpillar and pupa, but is otherwise not very variable. A number of forms have been described: T. alecto f. transcaspica O. Bang-Haas has an orange-red submarginal line on the forewings, T. alecto f. cretica Boisduval is noticeably paler in color and has a yellow-brown tint on the forewings and orange-red hind wings. The differences between the forms result mainly, but not exclusively, from their area of distribution. The first form is described from Turkmenistan , T. alecto f. cretica occurs mainly in the dry and hot regions of Southeast Europe and the Middle East.
The antennae are white on top and yellowish on the underside. The thorax is brown and has a whitish line on each side. This either runs from the tip of the head to the base of the wings, or merges into the basic color of the underside and sides of the body, which is the same as the color of the undersides of the wings. The top of the body is the same color as the top of the wings.
♂ Theretra alecto
♂ △ Theretra alecto
♀ Theretra alecto
♀ △ Theretra alecto
Caterpillar
In the last stage, the caterpillars have a body length of 80 to 110 millimeters with a body diameter of around 11 millimeters. Your anal horn reaches a length of 10 millimeters.
In the first stage the caterpillars are pale yellow in color and have a long, straight, black anal horn. After eating the food plant, the body color changes to green, as it is in the second stage.
In the third stage, the head and body are green, with a dark green stripe on the back and a white stripe on both sides of the back ( dorsolateral ). There are eye spots in the dorsolateral stripes on the fifth through eleventh segments . The eye spots on the fifth segment are larger than the rest. They are either reddish or outlined in blue and black. The long, thin anal horn is basally red or orange, otherwise black. From the third caterpillar stage, individuals also appear that have a darker body color.
In the fourth stage, the green body of the animals is provided with yellow spots, which are missing on the second to fifth segments. On these segments there is a narrow, black, sharply delimited back line, which is brown and diffuse delimited to the rear up to the eleventh segment. The dorsolateral stripes are bounded upwards by a dark green shadow. The eye spot on the fifth segment is large and round, the pupil is black at the top with a red or brownish-purple tone, it is lined with broad, bright yellow below, narrow white at the top and then bordered with black overall. The other eye-spots are oblong-oval, their pupils are purple or red above, yellow below and the whole is outlined in black. The anal horn is of medium length, straight, or slightly curved up or down. Its base is dull red, otherwise it is glossy black and has a white tip in some individuals. The entire anal horn is provided with correspondingly equally colored small tubercles .
In the fifth and final stage of the caterpillar, the head is dull and has a smooth surface, just like the body. Body segments four and five are clearly swollen. The anal horn is of medium length. Basically it is compact, tapers evenly to a point and is slightly curved downwards. Its surface is matt and has small tubercles. There is a green, a brown-purple and a red-brown color morph. The former has a grass-green head. The body is dark green above the dorsolateral stripes, below pale green and narrow, fine white dots. The dorsolateral stripes are pale yellow and run from the second segment to the base of the anal horn. They are interrupted by the eye spots. There is a narrow, dark green line on the back. The eye spot on the fifth segment is oblong-oval, the pupil is pear-shaped black above, green or purple-brown below. The pupil is wide at the bottom, otherwise has a narrow pale yellow border and then again finely framed in brown or green. The eye spots on the sixth to eleventh segment are oblong-oval, their upper half is green or purple in color, paler on top, the lower half is yellow and merges into the dorsolateral stripes of the same color. The whole eye spot has a fine brown or green border. The anal horn is purple, the legs red, each of its segments being finely colored yellow at the distal end. The stigmas are purple with a fine brown ring.
In the brown color variant of the caterpillars, green is replaced by olive brown or brownish-violet. The eye spots are colored like the green variant, but darker. There are seven wide, dark brown diagonal stripes on the sides of the body, which are lined with pink.
Egg and doll
The slightly oval eggs are usually 2.0 by 1.75 millimeters in diameter. However, they vary in relation to the size of the females and can also be only 1.7 by 1.45 millimeters in size. They are pale green and have a shiny, smooth surface and thus look similar to those of the poplar hawk ( Laothoe populi ). They turn yellow two to three days after egg-laying.
The pupa is 45 to 69 millimeters long and about 13 millimeters wide. It is matt ocher, the trunk sheath is red-brown. The dorsal head and abdomen have a greenish stripe. The stigmas and the short, broadly triangular, downward-curved kremaster are black.
Systematics
Theretra alecto was first described as Sphinx alecto by Carl von Linné in 1758 in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae . The specific epithet alecto is derived from Alekto (Ἀληκτώ), one of the three goddesses of revenge in Greek mythology . Jacob Hübner described the genus Theretra in 1819 , to which the species is now assigned. In addition to the nominate form Theretra alecto alecto , Danner / Eitschberger / Surholt (1998) also uses the subspecies Th. A. cretica (Boisduval, 1827) recognized. However, other authors do not consider this subspecies status to be justified, but assume that these animals are only paler in color because they colonize drier habitats.
Occurrence and habitat
The range of the species covers large parts of the southern Palearctic and the Oriental . It extends in the west from Greece and Bulgaria over the south and east of Turkey, Cyprus, Transcaucasia , large parts of Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan and from there south over Iraq, Lebanon, Israel and the fertile regions of Egypt. To the east, the area then extends over Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka , Nepal and southern China to Taiwan , to southern Japan, to the Philippines and Indonesia. It mainly populates areas where viticulture is practiced or where grapevines (Vitaceae) grow. In Europe it is more likely to be found on ornamental plants than in vineyards, as it usually perishes there due to the use of pesticides . In Greece the species has been proven up to a height of 1200 meters. With the exception of the pigeon tail ( Macroglossum stellatarum ), it is the most common species in its family in Lebanon .
Migratory individuals can be found west to Sicily and north of Romania . The species is likely to be native on Corfu .
Way of life
Little is known about the way of life of the adults . They can be attracted by both artificial light sources and flowers.
Flight and caterpillar times
In the western area of distribution the species usually flies in three overlapping generations in April / May, June / July and August / September. Sometimes another, incomplete generation appears in October and November. In China, the animals fly between late March to mid-June, depending on the region, in Taiwan from July to October, and in Japan, depending on the region, from mid-May to early September. The caterpillars are usually found in the western range between May and the end of September.
Food of the caterpillars
The caterpillars feed on the eastern area of distribution of species of the genera vines ( Vitis ), parthenocissus ( Parthenocissus ), Cissus , Leea , Rubia ( Rubia ), psychotria ( Psychotria ) saurauia , Dillenia and Tetracera , where food crops are still unknown from China. In the western distribution area the caterpillars are mainly found on grapevines and virgin vines, for example in southern Turkey mainly on grapevines ( Vitis vinifera ) and Parthenocissus quinquefolia . They are less commonly found on blush and cotton ( Gossypium spp.).
development
The females lay up to five clutches with a total of around 150 to 250 eggs on both the top and bottom of young leaves of the food plants. The caterpillars grow very quickly and are fully grown after 15 to 25 days. Because of their predilection for grapevines and their abundance in places, they can cause damage in agriculture.
When the caterpillars are fully grown, they leave the plants very quickly and look for a suitable place to pupate. This takes place in different places. Mostly it takes place in a loosely spun cocoon between leaves on the ground. Other places of pupation are under stones or behind bark, in each case without web. During the summer, many caterpillars pupate above ground by spinning several leaves of the food plants together. The pupa itself is not attached inside the cocoon. The pupil rest lasts from 15 days to five months. The pupa is also in the wintering stage.
No parasitoids of the species are known in China . The other hand, are from the western part of the range parasitic wasps Hyposoter didymator and Mesochorus discitergus detected as parasitoids.
supporting documents
literature
- Fritz Danner, Ulf Eitschberger, Bernhard Surholt: The enthusiasts of the western Palaearctic . In: Herbipolania, series of books on lepidopterology . 1st edition. tape 4/1 . Dr. Ulf Eitschberger, Marktleuthen 1998, ISBN 3-923807-03-1 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Theretra alecto (LINNAEUS, 1758). Lepiforum eV, accessed on January 12, 2012 .
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Sphingidae of the Western Palaearctic. AR Pittaway, accessed December 18, 2010 .
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Sphingidae of the Eastern Palaearctic. AR Pittaway, accessed December 18, 2010 .
- ^ First description of Sphinx cretica Boisduval, 1827 from Annis Soc. linn. Paris 6: 118 in Fritz Danner, Ulf Eitschberger, Bernhard Surholt: The enthusiasts of the western Palearctic . In: Herbipolania, series of books on lepidopterology . 1st edition. tape 4/1 . Dr. Ulf Eitschberger, Marktleuthen 1998, ISBN 3-923807-03-1 .
- ^ A b Ian J. Kitching, Jean-Marie Cadiou: Hawkmoths of the World. An Annotated and Illustrated Revisionary Checklist (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae). Cornell University Press, New York 2000, ISBN 0-8014-3734-2
- ↑ Fritz Danner, Ulf Eitschberger, Bernhard Surholt: The enthusiasts of the western Palaearctic . In: Herbipolania, series of books on lepidopterology . 1st edition. tape 4/1 . Dr. Ulf Eitschberger, Marktleuthen 1998, ISBN 3-923807-03-1 , p. 342 ff .
