Eurranthis plummistaria
Eurranthis plummistaria, males
Eurranthis plummistaria is a butterfly (moth ) from the family of the tensioner ( Geometridae ). The name of Colorful herbs dry tailings Back clover clamps ( Bergmann ) was not included in the literature.
- 5.1 Notes and references
- 5.2 Literature
Features
Butterfly
The male moths have a wingspan of 35 to 40 mm, females 32-40 mm. The drawing and coloring are highly variable; hardly a copy is exactly the same a others. The ground color varies from whitish to yellowish. On this ground three transverse lines are usually indicated, inner transverse line, center line and outer transverse line, but they are very irregular and can run into each other. The wavy line is usually indicated as a series of dots. Other smaller patches sitting in the fields between the transverse lines. The hind wings usually have a yellowish color, even if the forewings have a whitish color. One or two transverse lines is formed and a Diskalfleck. In Saumfeld another cross line is indicated by a row of dots. The male has feathery spread sensor, the female thread-like sensor.
Egg, caterpillar and chrysalis
The egg is rounded cylindrical, with the end with the micropyle is slightly narrower. The longitudinal ribs are formed clearly, otherwise only weakly only in the middle. The transverse ribs are generally only weak, often with a nodule at the intersection with the longitudinal ribs.
The dirty yellow caterpillar is smooth and cylindrical. She has fine dark transverse rows of dots and orange-red spots back side. A band around the neck is colored orange-red as well. The topline is dissolved in dark diamonds, the thin side ridge lines are colored reddish. The white yellow side stripes are wavy and narrow.
The brown doll has the cremaster two divergent peaks.
Geographical distribution and habitat
The type is in the border of the western Mediterranean spread: Morocco, Algeria, Iberian Peninsula, Southern France (Dept. Alpes -de -Haute -Provence, Drôme, Vaucluse and Hérault, Isère and Ardèche, ) and Italy (western part of Liguria). Forster & Wohlfahrt (1973 ) mention the occurrence in southern Switzerland. However, the specimens shown are from Oraison (Dept. Alpes- de -Haute- Provence). The occurrence in southern Switzerland must be regarded as a mistake. The species was also reported from Baden- Württemberg and Thuringia. Even in these cases must be assumed that an error or possibly entrained copies.
The species lives in the garrigue, in sparse forests with small lean grass clearings, dry grass hemming, rocky slopes and other locations, wherever the caterpillar food plant grows. She comes from the coast to 800 meters above MSL (up to 1000 meters).
Way of life
Eurranthis plummistaria forms in southern France two generations, in Italy only one generation. In southern France, the moths fly from March to June and then again from August to September. In southern Spain, they fly from February to April. However, there appears to be not always trained in France, a second generation. The moths are diurnal. The males fly during the day in erratic flight through their territory, the females on the other hand rather sit in the vegetation and fly only short distances. Eggs are laid directly on the caterpillars food plant or plant parts in the immediate vicinity. The caterpillars feed mainly on baking clover ( Dorycnium pentaphyllum). They are nocturnal and hide during the day in the baking clover plants. The pupa overwinters.
Systematics and Taxonomy
The species was described by Charles Joseph de Villers in 1789 for the first time scientifically. From Leraut (2009 ), two subspecies are recognized:
- Eurranthis plummistaria plummistaria that Nominatunterart
- Dusted Eurranthis plummistaria atlanticaria Le Cerf, 1923, North Africa, white, male genitalia differ with respect to the Nominatunterart
Leraut also distinguishes the following forms:
- All four wings are largely obscured: f auritaria Hübner, 1813
- Fore wing black to the inner transverse line and then again from the outer transverse line to the shaft line: f confluens Oberthuer, 1878
- The black portions are greatly reduced: f albicans Oberthuer, 1878
- Fore wing white, only the wings and the outer edges are yellow: f albosignata Neuburger, in 1907.