| Grey pine carpet | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Order: | |
| Family: | |
| Genus: | |
| Species: | T. obeliscata |
| Binomial name | |
| Thera obeliscata (Hübner, 1787) | |
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 wingspan is 28–36 mm. Forewing reddish brown or fulvous, the distal edge of the median band not strongly indented, or with only one deep indentation (on the fold); pale subterminal line commonly obsolete, or if present, not strongly dentate. Hindwing rather more glossy and brownish than that of Thera variata , the discal dot generally altogether obsolete on the upperside, though expressed beneath. — ab. tristrigaria Donov. is an infrequent aberration with three unusually well developed, elongate interneural submarginal streaks between the 5th subcostal and 3rd radial veins. The aberration, ab. mediolucens Rossi, is a rather striking form in which the ground-colour is appreciably darkened while the median band remains fulvous, thus appearing lighter, or at least brighter, than the adjoining areas. — ab. obliterata B. White is almost unicolorous brown-black or black-brown in Britain and occasionally in the mountains of Central Italy. [1] It is difficult to certainly distinguish Thera obeliscata from Thera britannica See Townsend et al. [2] The egg has an elongated shape and is yellowish to greenish coloured. The surface is divided by grooves into irregular fields filled with small warts. Adult caterpillars are coloured green. They show white-yellow dorsolateral lines and lateral stripes. At the rear end there are two small tips. The greenish or brownish pupa is covered with whitish or yellowish longitudinal lines. The tip has a reddish-brown colour.
Due to the great colour variability and the similar pattern elements Thera variata , Thera britannica , Thera cognata , Thera juniperata , Pennithera firmata as well as Thera cembrae and Pennithera ulicata are sometimes difficult to distinguish from some forms of Thera obeliscata. In case of doubt, specialists should be consulted for determination.
The larva primarily feeds on Pinus sylvestris and Norway spruce Picea abies . The species prefers settled pine forests.
The red underwing is a moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1767 12th edition of Systema Naturae.
The juniper carpet 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 Europe and the Near East, but is rather uncommon and locally distributed, mainly due to its very specific larval food plant.
The wormwood pug is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Alexander Clerck in 1759. It is a common species across the Palearctic region as well as North America.
The garden dart is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is distributed throughout much of the Palearctic. Temperate regions of Europe, Central Asia and North Asia, as well as the mountains of North Africa. Absent from polar regions, on Iceland and some Mediterranean islands, as well as in Macaronesia.
The flame shoulder is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1761. It is distributed throughout the Palearctic from Ireland in the west to Siberia then Korea and Japan in the east.
The spruce carpet is a moth in the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Alfred Jefferis Turner in 1925. It is a double-brooded species, meaning it has two broods in one year. Its wings are coloured with different shades of grey, but the spring brood tends to have more brown colours.
The silver Y is a migratory moth of the family Noctuidae which is named for the silvery Y-shaped mark on each of its forewings.
Xanthorhoe ferrugata, the dark-barred twin-spot carpet, is a moth of the genus Xanthorhoe in the family Geometridae. It was first described by Carl Alexander Clerck in 1759 and has a Holarctic distribution.
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.
Perizoma albulata, the grass rivulet, is a moth of the genus Perizoma in the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775.
Cyclophora punctaria, the maiden's blush, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. The species is mainly prevalent in Central and Eastern Europe. In the north, its distribution extends to southern Fennoscandia and the British Isles, in the west via France to parts of northern Spain, in the south via Italy, the Balkan Peninsula to Asia Minor. The eastern border of the distribution is roughly the Ural. In the Caucasus area, the nominate subspecies is replaced by the subspecies C. punctaria fritzae. The range of this subspecies extends as far as Iran.Cyclophora punctaria is found mainly in wooded areas with oak scrub and oak forests. In Central Europe it rises up to 700 metres in the hills, rarely up to 1,200 metres in the Alps, and regularly rises to 1,300 metres in southern Europe.
Thera variata, the spruce carpet, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is found throughout Europe, North Asia and Japan. The common name spruce carpet is also used when referring to Thera britannica.
Thera firmata, the pine carpet, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is found throughout Europe, Anatolia and countries bordering the Caucasus Mountains.
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.
Catocala sponsa, the dark crimson underwing, is a species of moth of the family Erebidae. It is found in Europe, North Africa and from Anatolia up to the Caucasus.
Aethalura punctulata, the grey birch, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species is found in Europe and then east, as far as western Siberia and the Caucasus.This species prefers sparse alder-ash-floodplain forests on moist to wet locations. Although it is only locally distributed in Central Europe, it is usually common in these biotopes. It occurs from the plains to the middle mountain regions. In the Alps it rises up to 1600 m.
Mesapamea secalis, the common rustic, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. It is found in Europe, north-west Africa, Turkey and northern Iran.
Agrotis vestigialis, the archer's dart, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Johann Siegfried Hufnagel in 1766. It is found in most of the Palearctic realm from Ireland east, through to Russia, Siberia, the Altai mountains and the Amur region, and is also present in the Mediterranean Basin. It is absent from the north of Finland and Norway.
Agrochola helvola, the flounced chestnut, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. The species is found in most of Europe, north to Scotland and Fennoscandia up to the Arctic Circle, south to Spain, Sicily, Greece further east to the Middle East, Armenia, Asia Minor, western Turkestan and central Asia up to central Siberia.
Thera cognata, the chestnut-coloured carpet or Durham juniper moth, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Carl Peter Thunberg in 1792. It is found in Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus and Transcaucasus.
Media related to Thera obeliscata at Wikimedia Commons