The grey pug (''Eupithecia subfuscata'') 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 ''met ...

. It is found throughout the

Palearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...

region. It is also found in North America. Since it does not place any special demands on climatic conditions, special caterpillar food plants, geological subsoil or the like it is a typical species of almost any Hochstaudenflur (plant corridor), where it occurs in the herb layer, in bushes and even on deciduous trees. It can be found on forest edges and hedgerows, on heath, in rocky places and wetlands, parks and gardens, as well as in villages and town centres.

Subspecies

There are two subspecies: *''Eupithecia subfuscata subfuscata'' *''Eupithecia subfuscata ussuriensis'' Dietze 1910 (Russian Far East, Japan)

Description

The forewings of this species are grey (occasionally with an ochreous tinge) marked with pale

fascia A fascia (; plural fasciae or fascias; adjective fascial; from Latin: "band") is a band or sheet of connective tissue, primarily collagen, beneath the skin that attaches to, stabilizes, encloses, and separates muscles and other internal organs. ...

and radial lines which give it a mottled appearance. There is a pale sub-marginal line and a small discal spot. The hindwings are much paler and plainer also with a small black discal spot.

Melanism The term melanism refers to black pigment and is derived from the gr, μελανός. Melanism is the increased development of the dark-colored pigment melanin in the skin or hair. Pseudomelanism, also called abundism, is another variant of pi ...

is quite common in this species. 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 17–21 mm. See also Prout Prout, L. B. (1912–16). Geometridae. In A. Seitz (ed.) ''The Macrolepidoptera of the World''. The Palaearctic Geometridae, 4. 479 pp. Alfred Kernen, Stuttgar
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Final instar larvae are smooth and elongated. They are grey-green or red-brown coloured and show a grey-green to dark olive-green diamond-like pattern on the back. The side edges are whitish.The pupa is yellow-brown with greenish wing sheaths. At the cremaster there are six hook bristles, the middle pair of which is more powerfully formed.

Biology

The adults fly in May and June with a second brood sometimes emerging in August. The species flies at night and is attracted to light. The species overwinters as a

pupa A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...

Larval food plants

The

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

feeds on the leaves and flowers of a wide range of plants. *''

Abies Firs (''Abies'') are a genus of 48–56 species of evergreen coniferous trees in the family Pinaceae. They are found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The genus is most closely related to ...

'' – fir *''

Achillea ''Achillea'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, known colloquially as yarrows. The plants typically have frilly leaves. The common name "yarrow" usually refers to '' A. millefolium''. The genus was named after the Gre ...

'' *'' Aegopodium'' – ground-elder *''

Alnus Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few spec ...

'' – alder *''

Angelica ''Angelica'' is a genus of about 60 species of tall biennial and perennial herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as Iceland, Lapland, and Greenland. They grow t ...

'' *''

Artemisia Artemisia may refer to: People * Artemisia I of Caria (fl. 480 BC), queen of Halicarnassus under the First Persian Empire, naval commander during the second Persian invasion of Greece * Artemisia II of Caria (died 350 BC), queen of Caria under th ...

'' *''Betula'' –

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech-oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 30 ...

*''

Centaurea ''Centaurea'' () is a genus of over 700 species of herbaceous thistle-like flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Members of the genus are found only north of the equator, mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere; the Middle East and surrounding reg ...

'' *''Cirsium'' – creeping thistle *'' Comptonia'' – sweetfern *''

Epilobium ''Epilobium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Onagraceae, containing about 197 species. The genus has a worldwide distribution. It is most prevalent in the subarctic, temperate and subantarctic regions, whereas in the subtropics and ...

'' – willowherb *''

Filipendula ''Filipendula'' is a genus of 12 species of perennial herbaceous flowering plants in the family Rosaceae, native to the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Well-known species include meadowsweet (''Filipendula ulmaria'') and dropwort ( ...

'' – meadowsweet *''

Galium ''Galium'' is a large genus of annual and perennial herbaceous plants in the family Rubiaceae, occurring in the temperate zones of both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Some species are informally known as bedstraw. There are over 600 spe ...

'' – bedstraw *''

Hypericum ''Hypericum'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Hypericaceae (formerly considered a subfamily of Clusiaceae). The genus has a nearly worldwide distribution, missing only from tropical lowlands, deserts and polar regions. Many ''Hype ...

'' – St John's wort *''

Larix Larches are deciduous conifers in the genus ''Larix'', of the family Pinaceae (subfamily Laricoideae). Growing from tall, they are native to much of the cooler temperate northern hemisphere, on lowlands in the north and high on mountains furth ...

'' – larch *''

Lysimachia ''Lysimachia'' () is a genus consisting of 193 accepted species of flowering plants traditionally classified in the family Primulaceae. Based on a molecular phylogenetic study it was transferred to the family Myrsinaceae, before this family wa ...

'' – yellow loosestrife *''

Malus ''Malus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 30–55 species of small deciduous trees or shrubs in the family Rosaceae, including the domesticated orchard apple, crab apples, wild apples, and rainberries. The genus is native to the temperate zone of th ...

'' – apple *''

Ononis ''Ononis'' is a large genus of perennial herbs and shrubs from the legume family Fabaceae. The members of this genus are often called restharrows as some species grow as weeds on arable lands whose tough stems would stop the harrow. They are na ...

'' – restharrow *''

Picea A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

'' – black spruce *''

Populus ''Populus'' is a genus of 25–30 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar (), aspen, and cottonwood. The we ...

'' – poplar *''

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 ...

'' – raspberry *''

Salix Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...

'' – willow *''

Scabiosa ''Scabiosa'' is a genus in the honeysuckle family (Caprifoliaceae) of flowering plants. Many of the species in this genus have common names that include the word scabious, but some plants commonly known as scabious are currently classified in r ...

'' *''

Solidago ''Solidago'', commonly called goldenrods, is a genus of about 100 to 120''Solidago''.
F ...

'' – goldenrod *''

Tanacetum ''Tanacetum'' is a genus of about 160 species of flowering plants in the aster family, Asteraceae, native to many regions of the Northern Hemisphere.

'' – tansy *''

Urtica ''Urtica'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Urticaceae. Many species have stinging hairs and may be called nettles or stinging nettles, although the latter name applies particularly to ''Urtica dioica''. ''Urtica'' species are food f ...

'' – nettle *''Valeriana'' – valerian

Similar species

*'' Eupithecia virgaureata'' *''

Eupithecia lariciata The larch pug (''Eupithecia lariciata'') is a moth of the family Geometer moth, Geometridae. The species can be found in Europe, the Ural Mountains, West and Central Siberia, the Altai Mountains, Transbaikalia, Sakha Republic, Yakutia, the Far Ea ...

'' A safe determination is usually only possible by means of a genital morphological examination.

References

*Chinery, Michael ''Collins Guide to the Insects of Britain and Western Europe'' 1986 (Reprinted 1991) *Skinner, Bernard ''Colour Identification Guide to Moths of the British Isles'' 1984

External links

Grey pug at ''UKMoths''''Lepiforum e.V.''
{{Taxonbar , from=Q2381926 Eupithecia Moths described in 1809 Moths of Asia Moths of Europe Moths of North America Taxa named by Adrian Hardy Haworth