| Brindled beauty | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Male of Lycia hirtaria | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Geometridae |
| Genus: | Lycia |
| Species: | L. hirtaria |
| Binomial name | |
| Lycia hirtaria (Clerck, 1759) | |
The brindled beauty (Lycia hirtaria) is a Palearctic moth belonging to the family Geometridae.
This species can be found in most of Europe, including Russia, Caucasus, Transcaucasia, Asia Minor, South Siberia, Yakutia, Russian Far East, Sakhalin and Japan. [2]
These moths prefer woodland and suburban areas. [3]
The brindled beauty has a wingspan of 4–5 cm. It is a large-bodied furry moth, which has a pattern which provides near-perfect camouflage on tree trunks and also gives the moth its name. The forewing ground colour is usually grey with black dusting. There is a curved anterior and a curved exterior cross line limiting the midfield. The Hindwings are also grey and have two or three crosslines. The females have a pale yellow suffusion on the wings and the front edges of their forewings are paler. [4] The males show large comb-like antennae. [5]
Variation female-ab. terroraria Krulik. is described as unicolorous grey, with weak traces of the lines on the veins of the forewing. Female -ab. fumaria Haw. is fuscous or smoky black, in extreme examples entirely unmarked.- diniensis Ob. differs little from the name-type, but the lines appear to be very strong and thick. Figured without description. Basses-Alpes.- ab. fasciata [Prout] is a beautiful modification of diniensis with the antemedian line double and with a blackish band extending from the median line of the forewing to the subterminal. Le Canadel. Var, France, - ab. flavescens [Prout] may be taken as the name of the more yellow-mixed form which is common in England, N. France, etc.- ab. congeneraria Hbn. has the antemedian and postmedian lines very distinctly double. Possibly forms a separate race in Algeria - istriana Galv. is a large, whitish-mixed form from Istria- hanoviensis Heymons is a small race, more densely scaled, the ground-colour more mixed with ochreous-yellow, the dark markings extended into strong suffusions. [6]
The brindled beauty is nocturnal. The moths fly from March to the end of May, and the males are attracted to light. [3] [5]
The egg is ellipsoid, micropylar and somewhat concave and granulated; the rest of the surface somewhat glossy, the granulation discernible on strong magnification. [6]
The caterpillar of the brindled beauty ranges from greyish-green or brown in colour purplish, with thread-like longitudinal black lines and with yellow marks near the segment incisions. [4] [6]
The caterpillar is polyphagous, mainly feeding from late spring to early summer [5] on broad-leaved trees and deciduous shrubs ( Betula , Quercus , Alnus , Fraxinus, Ulmus , Salix , Populus , Berberis , Ribes , Rosa , Rubus , Filipendula , Malus , Sorbus , Crataegus , Prunus , Tilia , Rhamnus , Vaccinium ). [7] The pupa overwinters.
The large emerald is a moth which is the type species for the family Geometridae. It is found throughout the Palearctic region and the Near East in and around deciduous forests, heathlands, marshland and in settlements close to woodland. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
The silver-ground carpet is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775. It is common throughout the Palearctic region including the Near East and North Africa.It is found in a variety of different habitats and occurs, for example, in humid forests, moorland and shore areas, on embankments or on unimproved grass meadows and heathlands as well as in gardens.
The clouded border is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. It is distributed across most of Europe to the Urals, western and central Siberia, Transbaikalia, Kazakhstan, Tian-Shan, northern Mongolia and parts of the Near East.
The scalloped oak is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
The mottled umber is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is common throughout much of the Palearctic region. The species was first described by Carl Alexander Clerck in 1759.
The mottled beauty is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
The brimstone moth is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. It should not be confused with the brimstone butterfly Gonepteryx rhamni.
Xanthorhoe spadicearia, the red twin-spot carpet, is a moth of the genus Xanthorhoe in the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775.
Biston strataria, the oak beauty, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is native to Europe, the Balkan countries and the Black Sea region as far as Asia Minor and the Caucasus. The species was first described by Johann Siegfried Hufnagel in 1767. B. strataria is found in a variety of habitats, but is mostly found in woodlands where it rests on the bark of trees, camouflaged by its mottled black and grey wings. The male has feather-like antennae while those of the female are more thread-like. The moth has a wingspan of 40 to 56 mm.
Cepphis advenaria, the little thorn, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species can be found in Europe and across the Palearctic to Japan.
Plemyria rubiginata, the blue-bordered carpet, is a moth of the family Geometridae found in Europe and across the Palearctic. The moth was first described by the Austrian lepidopterists Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775.
Plagodis pulveraria, the barred umber, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. It is found throughout much of the Palearctic realm from Ireland to Japan, and in the Nearctic realm (Canada).
Scotopteryx chenopodiata, the shaded broad-bar, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Selenia lunularia, the lunar thorn, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is found in Europe except Iberia and Greece; also in Asia Minor, Armenia, SiberiaIssyk-Kul.
Eupithecia nanata, the narrow-winged pug, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Jacob Hübner in 1813. It can be found all over Europe including Russia and Ukraine. In the Alps it occurs up to 2,200 metres (7,200 ft) above sea level and in the Pyrenees to 2400 meters. The species prefers dry or boggy heathlands.
Thera obeliscata, the grey pine carpet, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is found throughout north and central Europe and east across the Palearctic to Siberia, and south to the Caucasus and Transcaucasia. In the Alps it can be found at an altitude of over 1500 metres.
The frosted orange moth is a moth of the family Noctuidae which is found in Europe, Armenia, Syria and east through the Palearctic to western Siberia. It has also been recorded in Algeria. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775. The frosted orange is a night-flying species with orange and brown speckled wings allow for perfect camouflage against autumn leaves in the daytime. It is attracted to light and does not come to flowers, and its larva inhabit the stems and roots of the species' food plants.
Lycia is a genus of moths in the family Geometridae.
Agriopis aurantiaria, the scarce umber, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It was first described by Jacob Hübner in 1799 and it is found throughout Europe from Spain through Central Europe to Russia. In the south it can be found from the western Mediterranean to the Black Sea and the Caucasus. Its northern distribution reaches as far as central Fennoscandia. The species can be found in many different places, including deciduous forests, orchards, gardens as well as parks and settlement areas.
Phigalia pilosaria, the pale brindled beauty, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775. It is found from Europe and Anatolia to the Caucasus.
