''Cucullia gnaphalii'', the cudweed, 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 from most of Europe (except

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and most of the

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) to

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Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

and Sayan.

Technical description and variation

''C. gnaphalii'' Hbn. (27 e). Like '' Cucullia xeranthemi'', from which it is distinguished by the more rounded orbicular, not 8-shaped; by the absence of a black shade before outer line in submedian fold, while the black line beyond it is thickened and more conspicuous; the outer line being bent at right angles on the fold, its lower half vertical; above vein 4 a black streak from the reniform stigma, interrupted in the middle; a black streak along middle of inner margin; hindwing brownish, the basal half paler, but not nearly so pale as in ''xeranthemi''. Larva deep green; dorsal stripe broad, red-brown; spiracles yellow on an interrupted red-brown streak; head green. The

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 ...

is 38–46 mm.

Biology

Adults are on wing from May to July. There is one generation per year. The larvae feed on the flowers and leaves of ''

Solidago virgaurea ''Solidago virgaurea'', the European goldenrod or woundwort, is an herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae. It is widespread across most of Europe as well as North Africa and northern, central, and southwestern Asia (China, Russia, ...

'', ''

Solidago canadensis ''Solidago canadensis'', known as Canada goldenrod or Canadian goldenrod, is an herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae. It is native to northeastern and north-central North America and often forms colonies of upright growing plants, ...

'', '' Artemisia absinthium'' and ''

Artemisia vulgaris ''Artemisia vulgaris'', the common mugwort, is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae. It is one of several species in the genus ''Artemisia'' commonly known as mugwort, although ''Artemisia vulgaris'' is the species most ...

'' hiding by day under the leaves close to the ground. The species overwinters in the pupal stage, in a tough earthen cocoon usually among surface debris or sometimes underground.

References

External links

''Lepiforum e. V.''

Technical description and variation

Biology

References

External links

See also