''Apamea griveaudi'' is a

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...

of the family

Noctuidae The Noctuidae, commonly known as owlet moths, cutworms or armyworms, are a family of moths. They are considered the most controversial family in the superfamily Noctuoidea because many of the clades are constantly changing, along with the other f ...

. It is found in northern

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. Its

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan of ...

ranges from 40 to 55 mm, and the length of the forewings is 19.5 to 27 mm. This species is also

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

. The adult moth has a wingspan of about 30-35 mm, and its forewings are pale yellow or ochre in color, with distinctive dark markings. The hindwings are whitish with a faint yellow tint. The caterpillar of Apamea griveaudi feeds on various grasses and herbaceous plants.

References

Apamea (moth) Moths of Madagascar Endemic fauna of Madagascar Moths described in 1967 Taxa named by Pierre Viette {{Apamea-stub