Mormo maura
Black ribbon ( Mormons maura )
The black ribbon ( Mormons maura ) ( Syn: Mania maura ) is a butterfly (moth ) from the family of cutworms ( Noctuidae ).
The German name " black ribbon " is systematically misleading, because the type does not belong to the genus of Ribbons, but forms a separate genus.
- 5.1 Notes and references
- 5.2 Literature
Features
Butterfly
With a wingspan 63-74 millimeters count the butterflies to the larger species. The front wings are very wide and dark brown in color, with the midfield clearly underlines black brown. At the front edge there are some striking black line spots. The wavy line is broad and dark. Ring and kidney blemish are bright -rimmed. Typical for the wide black band is in front of the hem on the hind wings, which is edged with tan lines. On the thorax and abdomen are some brown hair tufts. The antennae of the males are furnished with short eyelashes, those of the females are thready.
Egg, caterpillar, pupa
The egg, however, has a spherical shape, is strongly flattened at the upper pole easily and at the lower pole. It shimmers whitish to yellowish. The surface is provided with strong longitudinal ribs, a few of which reach but the Mikropylzone.
Adults caterpillars are brown in color. They look thick and walzig. On the eleventh segment a yellow-gray increase and a yellowish-white, thick black -lined slash can be seen. The whitish back - and side- back lines are irregular. On the sides bright, black outlined slashes are present. The spiracles are colored red and outlined in black.
The reddish brown pupae shows a blue tires and two curved thorns and some fine bristles on the cremaster.
Similar Species
Due to the size of the moths and their distinctive wings drawing the style is unmistakable.
Geographical distribution and habitat
The black ribbon is distributed from North West Africa throughout southern Europe. Its northern limit is reached in the West in Northern Ireland and central Scotland, in Central Europe, however, already in northern Germany and Poland. In some Nordic countries, there are single finds. Other occurrences areas include Asia Minor, the Middle East, Iraq and Turkestan. In the Alps, the animals grow to a height of about 1000 meters. You can find the black ribbon mainly near water, ie in river valleys, meadows, moors, near rivers streams, ponds and lakes.
Way of life
The nocturnal moths suck sometimes from bleeding trees and love to visit -scale bait on which they occasionally appear in number Artificial light sources they are looking for, however, only extremely rarely. Main flight period are the months of July and August. The caterpillars evolve from August, overwinter and pupate in May of the following year in a dense, water -repellent spun on the ground. They feed on the leaves of various low plants, such as dandelion (Taraxacum ), Common Sorrel ( Rumex acetosa ) or stinging nettle (Urtica dioica ) as well as growing near water woods such as alder ( Alnus ), willow ( Salix) and poplars (Populus ). They preferred to keep to the lower branches.
Endangering
In Germany, the black ribbon is usually rare and out on the red list of endangered species on the early warning list.