''Grammodes stolida'', the geometrician, 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

Erebidae The Erebidae are a family of moths in the superfamily Noctuoidea. The family is among the largest families of moths by species count and contains a wide variety of well-known macromoth groups. The family includes the underwings ('' Catocala'') ...

. The species was first described by

Johan Christian Fabricius Johan Christian Fabricius (7 January 1745 – 3 March 1808) was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others. He was a student of Carl Linnaeus, and is cons ...

in 1775. It is found in Africa, southern Europe, most of Asia and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It migrates to central and northern Europe as far north as

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

and

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

Technical description and variation

Forewing: basal two-thirds black brown, with basal patch, costal streak, and reniform stigma fuscous grey; crossed at middle by a pale ochreous band oblique from subcostal and widening downwards, its outer half yellowish; limited externally by a biconcave ochreous band, narrower below, followed below vein 6 by a broad brown band, on the outer edge of which are three or four irregular black patches, and above and beyond it on costa a black blotch, sharply angled externally on vein 6, these black marks forming the inner edge of a diffuse submarginal pale line; terminal area shaded with brown and fuscous, with a short black apical streak and a diffuse dark cloud below the middle; fringe grey with white base, altogether whitish round apex: hindwing olive fuscous, becoming blackish towards termen; a white band from costa at one-third to anal angle, and a round white submarginal spot in submedian fold; fringe brightly white, but grey between veins 2 and 4; the form ''stupida'' H.-Sch. (? spec. dist.) from Salonica, Macedonia, has the bands marked with yellow only at inner margin, indicated merely by two straight dark streaks: the outer band more strongly bent inwards to costa; the white band of hindwing not straight but forming two curves; in the ab. ''attenuata'' ab. nov. arrenthe white band is merely a narrow line from cell to inner margin.Seitz, A. Ed., 1914 ''Die Großschmetterlinge der Erde'', Verlag Alfred Kernen, Stuttgart Band 3: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes, Die palaearktischen eulenartigen Nachtfalter, 1914

Biology

There are multiple generations per year. Adults are on wing from February to October. Larva reddish yellow, paler on dorsum and along spiracles, marked with fine black longitudinal streaks; dorsal and subdorsal stripes dark grey, the former widening beyond the 5th segment; spiraeular lineline, double: dorsal tubercles large, while ringed with black. The larvae feed on ''

Paliurus ''Paliurus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rhamnaceae. The eight species are native to warm, dry regions of Eurasia and North Africa from Morocco and Spain east to Japan and Taiwan. Description They are shrubs or small trees grow ...

'', ''

Rubus ''Rubus'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae, with over 1,350 species. Raspberries, blackberries, and dewberries are common, widely distributed members of the genus. Most of these ...

'', ''

Tribulus ''Tribulus'' is a genus of plants in the family Zygophyllaceae and found in diverse climates and soils worldwide from latitudes 35°S to 47°N. The best-known member is '' T. terrestris'' (puncture vine), a widespread invasive species and weed. ...

'', ''

Coriaria ''Coriaria'' is the sole genus in the family Coriariaceae, which was described by Linnaeus in 1753. It includes 14 species of small trees, shrubs and subshrubs, with a widespread but disjunct distribution across warm temperate regions of the worl ...

'' and ''

Quercus An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably '' ...

'' species.

References

External links

* * Taxonomy *
"08909 ''Grammodes stolida'' (Fabricius, 1775) - Tölpeleule"
''Lepiforum e.V.'' Ophiusina Moths described in 1775 Moths of Europe Moths of Africa Moths of Cape Verde Moths of the Comoros Moths of the Middle East Moths of Madagascar Moths of Réunion Moths of Seychelles Moths of Asia Taxa named by Johan Christian Fabricius {{Catocalini-stub