Dichonia aprilina
Green Eicheneule ( Griposia aprilina )
The Green Eicheneule ( Griposia aprilina, syn. Dichonia aprilina ), also called Aprileule, is a common European butterfly (moth ) from the family of cutworms ( Noctuidae ). The specific epithet is derived from the Latin Aprilis for April, as the moth is so fresh green, like the " young green " in April.
- 4.1 Literature
- 4.2 Notes and references
Features
The Green Eicheneule has a wingspan 45-52 mm. The wings drawing varies widely, frequent aberration virgata ( with binding ) has broad confluent black blackouts, but is detected in Baden- Württemberg only once. The bright green forewings, which quickly lose their vibrant green, have sharply defined white transverse lines with thick black stripes, which are connected by a longitudinal strip. The antennae and legs are pale white-green me black rings. The hind wings are dark gray - brown, slightly lighter in the center. The discale spot and the transverse line are diffuse, but still most easily recognizable.
The reddish-brown, low egg has broad longitudinal ribs with large, white and green as well as small, black spots.
The black - brown to gray caterpillar has often interrupted, slightly broadened at the segments, bright topline. The side ridge lines are wider, but even more broken. On the back and the side of dark lines forming a diamond-shaped drawing, which bears white dots. The light brown head is darker netted, with two broad, black and brown bow strokes.
Similar Species
- Griposia pinkeri ( Kobe, 1973) is in Asia Minor and the Balkan Peninsula before sympatric.
Distribution and habitat
The Green Eicheneule comes from southern Norway and St. Petersburg from across northern and central Europe to southern France and northern Italy, as well as in Castile, Sardinia and South Eastern Russia ( foothills of the Ural Mountains to the Black Sea) ago. Outside Europe the kind of western and central Anatolia and from the Caucasus region is known. A recent proof there from the Alborz mountain range.
The Green Eicheneule is very common in the northern Mediterranean area and in forest-steppe, on the other hand often only available locally in the northern and north-western area of distribution. The habitats are preferred dry forests, especially oak forests with oak and mixed deciduous forests of the plains over the hills to river valleys and rocky woods in the mountains. You lack in the higher elevations of the mountains.
Way of life
The moths fly from late August to October. At dusk they begin to fly and fly almost the whole night. First they visit flowers and also bait, only later they fly to artificial light sources and light traps.
The hibernate individually deposited on bark eggs. The caterpillars hatch in the following spring and live from April to June on oaks (Quercus ), but also on ash trees (Fraxinus ), beech (Fagus ), Linden (Tilia ), poplar (Populus ) and fruit trees. On the day they stay in beef columns for stronger branches or on the trunk, down almost to the ground. They usually pupate between the oak roots in a strong cocoon in the soil.