Chlorissa viridata

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Small grass emerald
Chlorissa viridata.jpg
Chlorissa viridata1.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Geometridae
Genus: Chlorissa
Species:
C. viridata
Binomial name
Chlorissa viridata
Synonyms
  • Phalaena (Geometra) viridataLinnaeus, 1758
  • Phalaena volutataFabricius, 1775
  • Phalaena herbaceaFourcroy, 1785
  • Geometra prasinataWerneburg, 1864
  • Geometra viridaria

Chlorissa viridata, the small grass emerald, 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 from western Europe to the eastern Palearctic.

Contents

Figs. 5,5a Larva after final moult Buckler W The larvae of the British butterflies and moths PlateCXIV.jpg
Figs. 5,5a Larva after final moult

Technical description and variation

The base colour of the forewings is green, but soon fades to yellow. Face red-brown, fillet white, crown light green. Antennae in male filiform. Forewings light green; costal edge whitish - ochreous; first line faint, curved; second nearly straight, whitish; cilia white, basal half pale greenish. Hindwings as forewings, but first line absent; termen very obtusely angulated. Larva pale green, with purplish dorsal sometimes connected marks; subdorsal line whitish; lateral ridge pale yellow; head purplish. [1] The wingspan is 24–27 mm.

Biology

The larvae feed on Calluna vulgaris , Betula and Salix species (including Salix repens ). Other recorded food plants include Empetrum nigrum , Myrica gale , Vaccinium uliginosum , Quercus , Potentilla , Galium , Hieracium , Artemisia , Ononis , Clematis , Prunus , Crataegus , Corylus , Rubus , Erica , Ulex , Genista , Lotus corniculatus , Crataegus and Ledum palustre . Larvae can be found from July to August. The species overwinters as a pupa.

Etymology

The scientific name viridata refers to the green colour of the wings (viridis means green).

Subspecies

References

  1. Meyrick, E. (1895). A Handbook of British Lepidoptera. MacMillan, London. PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .