Spiris striata
Striped Grasbär ( Spiris striata )
The Striped Grasbär or Streifenbär ( Spiris striata ) is a butterfly (moth ) from the subfamily of the tiger moths ( Arctiinae ).
- 5.1 Literature
Description
The moths have a wingspan of 30 to 35 millimeters. They have very narrow, yellow or light yellow, the white solid front wings that are striped dark brown in the male. In females, the striations can almost missing or being restricted to the outer parts of the forewings. The also yellow, but darker hind wings are much wider and have a dark edge on the outside. There are also animals with completely dark hind wings. The antennae of the males are pinnate in contrast to those of the females. The yellowish- glossy eggs are flattened at the base and have at the upper end to a dark spot. The caterpillars are black, have bright spots on the side and along the back red brown spots. They are black hairy. The red-brown doll is rounded at the rear end with a few small bristles.
Way of life
The moths roll in its resting position the wings to the body which makes them appear much smaller. They are diurnal and can startle the late afternoon, but sit down after short flights back on grasses down.
Flight times and caterpillars
The type flies in one or two generations. Especially in Central and Northern Europe only one generation is generally formed in southern Europe a weaker second generation. The first generation can fly from May and then up into August. If a second generation formed, these flies from August to September.
Food
The caterpillars feed mainly horstige grasses and low herbs such as:
- Silver grass ( Corynephorus spec.)
- Fescue ( Festuca spp.)
- Heather ( Calluna spp.)
- Meadow Sage (Salvia pratensis)
- Hawkweed ( Hieracium spp.)
- Mugwort (Artemisia spp.)
They can be found in the afternoon in the upper parts of the plants, but also bask on the ground or on branches. They eat only after dusk.
Development
The caterpillars hatch in August. After the winter they are already active in the early spring and pupate in May / June in a white- green web on the ground between the leaves of the food plant. That same month, the butterflies hatch.
Occurrence
The animals are found throughout Europe. The distribution area extends across Asia Minor, Syria to Iran. In Eastern Europe (north of the Black and Caspian Sea) via Kazakhstan to Mongolia, Northern China and the Russian Far East. The animals prefer particularly sunny, sandy, open areas that are overgrown with grass and herbaceous plants, rarely on calcareous grasslands. They are therefore only regionally to meet, where living conditions are appropriate. But then they often are not rare. The vertical distribution ranges from the plains to the highlands.
System
The name of the species is not uniform. The Fauna Europaea (see below links ) lists the species under the genus Coscinia, since this genus is to be a senior synonym of Spiris. This view is apparently not shared by all experts as the various other sources ( Web Links and Literature ) show.