Water plume reed owl

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Water plume reed owl
Phragmatiphila nexa.jpg

Water vapor reed owl ( Phragmatiphila nexa )

Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Butterflies (Lepidoptera)
Family : Owl butterfly (Noctuidae)
Subfamily : Xyleninae
Genre : Phragmatiphila
Type : Water plume reed owl
Scientific name
Phragmatiphila nexa
( Huebner , 1808)

The water swath reed owl ( Phragmatiphila nexa ) is a butterfly ( moth ) from the family of the owl butterflies (Noctuidae).

features

The wingspan of the moths is 18 to 30 millimeters, with the females being significantly larger than the males. The short forewings have a color varying from light red-brown to dark red-brown. The whitish or yellowish kidney defects, which are enlarged in the form of a wide L, are very noticeable and characteristic. In contrast, the bright ring flaws are very small and punctiform, sometimes they are completely absent. Darkly protruding veins can be seen in the fringe area. Wavy and cross lines are missing. The middle field is usually a little more intensely colored. The hind wings are gray-brown. Here, too, the dark veins stand out from the ground. The dirty white colored caterpillar has indistinct, reddish side back lines as well as blackish side stripes, point warts and stigmas.

Synonyms

  • Nonagria nexa

Geographical distribution and habitat

The water-swath reed owl is widespread in Central Europe but very locally. In the north the occurrence extends to Denmark, southern Sweden and southern Finland, in the west to northern and central France, in the south to Switzerland, northern Italy, Austria and southern Hungary, in the east to Poland, the Baltic States and the European part of the former Soviet Union as well to Western Siberia. There are also isolated occurrences in central Italy, Sardinia and Corsica. It is bound to humid areas and prefers bog meadows, swamp areas, moss forests and bank areas with reed vegetation.

Way of life

The species is univoltin , which means that only one generation is formed per year. The moths fly relatively late in the year, mostly from mid-August to mid-September. They are crepuscular and nocturnal. In the evening they fly fast and low between the plants over damp terrain. Occasionally they visit artificial light sources , but avoid bait , as they have a rudimentary proboscis own. The caterpillars prefer to feed on the swamp sedge ( Carex acutiformis ), swaths of water ( Glyceria maxima ), reeds ( Phragmites australis ) and other marsh grasses, in whose stalks they eat and live. They pupate mostly between parts of the plant on the ground, occasionally also in the stalks of the forage plants, provided the soil is very moist or under water. Whether it is overwintered as an egg or a young caterpillar has yet to be clarified, as there are different statements on this topic in the literature.

Danger

The water-swath reed owl occurs in many federal states in Germany, but is mostly rare and is classified in category 3 (endangered) on the Red List of Endangered Species .

swell

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Alberto Zilli, Lázló Ronkay, Michael Fibiger: Noctuidae Europaeae Volume 8, Entomological Press, Søro 2005, ISBN 87-89430-09-3
  2. ↑ 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. ↑ GS Zolotarenko and VV Dubatolov: A check-list of Noctuidae (Lepidoptera) of the Russian part of the West Siberian Plain. Far Eastern Entomologist, 94: 1-23, Vladivostok 2000 ISSN  1026-051X PDF
  4. ↑ a b Günter Ebert (Ed.): The Butterflies of Baden-Württemberg Volume 7, Nachtfalter V. Ulmer Verlag Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-8001-3500-0
  5. ↑ 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 Volume 7, Nachtfalter V. Ulmer Verlag, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-8001-3500-0
  • Alberto Zilli, Lázló Ronkay, Michael Fibiger: Noctuidae Europaeae Volume 8, Entomological Press, Søro 2005, ISBN 87-89430-09-3

Web links

Commons : Wasserschwaden-Reed Owl  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files