''Eupithecia gelidata'' 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

Geometridae The geometer moths are moths belonging to the family Geometridae of the insect order Lepidoptera, the moths and butterflies. Their scientific name derives from the Ancient Greek ''geo'' γεω (derivative form of or "the earth"), and ''metro ...

. It is known from northern North America,

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...

, northern

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Swe ...

and northern central

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

. 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 o ...

is 17–22 mm. There is one generation per year with adults on wing from June to mid July. The larvae feed on ''

Rhododendron tomentosum ''Rhododendron tomentosum'' ( syn. ''Ledum palustre''), commonly known as marsh Labrador tea, northern Labrador tea or wild rosemary, is a flowering plant in the subsection '' Ledum'' of the large genus '' Rhododendron'' in the family Ericaceae. ...

'' but possibly also other plants, because the species has been found in areas of Norway and Sweden where ''R. tomentosum'' is not present. Larvae can be found from mid July to August. It overwinters as a pupa.

Subspecies

*''Eupithecia gelidata gelidata'' *''Eupithecia gelidata hyperboreata'' Staudinger, 1861 (Europe, northern Russia, Greenland)

References

Moths described in 1860 gelidata Moths of North America Moths of Europe {{Eupithecia-stub