Adscita schmidti
Adscita schmidti is a butterfly of the family of burnet ( Zygaenidae ).
- 4.1 Notes and references
- 4.2 Literature
Features
The moths reach a forewing length 10.0 to 13.5 mm in males and from 9.0 to 13.0 mm in females. Head, thorax and legs shimmering green or bluish green. The abdomen is brownish green and shines only weak. The sensors have a bluish-green shimmering shaft and consist of 36 to 42 segments. The forewings are either densely scaly or nearly translucent. The forewings are dark green, dark bluish green, bright green or golden green. The gloss is variable and can even be completely absent. The hind wings are dark gray or light gray and either opaque or translucent. The wing undersides are gray.
The moths are extremely variable in coloration, size and luster. A. schmidti comes as Adscita alpina and Adscita statices before both in dry and in wet habitats. For all three types exist habitat -related differences in habit and the number of sensor segments. In A. schmidti these are less pronounced than in the two similar species. The copies of the populations in the mountains of central Spain are larger and darker in color than those of the provinces of Cuenca, Teruel and southern Spain. The occurring in the moist areas of northern Spain large specimens with slightly translucent wings and bright green color similar to A. statices and can only be distinguished genitalmorphologisch of this kind.
In the males, the distal Valven have each a very short triangular ventral and dorsal tooth, which can sometimes also be reduced. The aedeagus is small and slender, and provided with two slender, straight, of equal length Cornuti. The 8th sternite is rounded at the rear end and extends to the rear end of the segment.
In females, the antrum is funnel-shaped. The proximal part of the ductus bursae has a smooth surface and is heavily sclerotized. Distal he is slim and straight and ends in a rectangular extension, in which the translucent, bent and curved distal part of the ductus bursae opens laterally. The corpus bursae is spherical.
The egg is pale yellow.
The caterpillar has a dark brown head, the prothorax is black-brown on the back. The body is yellowish white and marked with broad dark brown back and side back lines. The pages are provided brownish green with a narrow ventrolateral line. The belly is yellowish green. The warts are yellowish brown, the body is provided with more spiny tubercles, which can be seen as black dots at low magnification.
The pupa is light brown, the cocoon is brownish white and covered with earth and foliage components.
Similar Species
Adscita statices has a lighter color than occurring in central and southern Spain specimens of A. schmidti, the hind wings are translucent. But there are also instances in northern Spain, which are externally identical to the similar nature. The similar species occurs in Spain only in the Pyrenees.
The specimens of Adscita mannii from Italy and South East Europe are similar to those of the populations of A. schmidti that occur in central and southern Spain. The similar type but smaller and the front wing tops are stained much brighter and more golden green. Both types can be distinguished genitalmorphologisch.
Dissemination
Adscita schmidti is west of the Iberian peninsula of the Ebro common. The species colonized wet meadows in wetlands and dry meadows in sandy or rocky regions.
Biology
The females lay eggs in large groups on the underside of leaves. In moist habitats, the caterpillars develop on Common Sorrel ( Rumex acetosa ), in dry habitats at Little Sorrel ( Rumex acetosella ). The moths fly from May to August.