''Parapoynx stratiotata'', the ringed china-mark, 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

Crambidae The Crambidae are the grass moth family of lepidopterans. They are variable in appearance, the nominal subfamily Crambinae (grass moths) taking up closely folded postures on grass stems where they are inconspicuous, while other subfamilies includ ...

. The species was first described by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his Nobility#Ennoblement, ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalise ...

in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. It is found in Europe where the distribution area extends in the north to the British Isles including Ireland and in the south to Sardinia, Sicily and Greece. The species is also found across the Palearctic in North Africa, Lebanon, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and China.. 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 20–24 mm for the males and 28–30 mm for the females. The forewings are pale ochreous brownish, sometimes partly suffused with white in disc ; lines white, first indistinct, posteriorly partly edged with dark brown, second sinuate, anteriorly suffusedly edged with dark brown ; a white discal spot, edged with dark fuscous ; a white subterminal streak. Hindwings are white; a thick dark fuscous postmedian line ; a fine dark subterminal line ; termen yellow-tinged. The larva with eight series of groups of fleshy filaments, serving as branchiae ; whitish-ochreous or pale greenish, slightly purplish freckled; dorsal line rather dark grey ; head pale brown. The moth flies from May to September depending on the location. The larvae feed on ''

Nymphaea alba ''Nymphaea alba'', the white waterlily, European white water lily or white nenuphar , is an aquatic flowering plant in the family Nymphaeaceae. It is native to North Africa, temperate Asia, Europe and tropical Asia (Jammu and Kashmir). Descrip ...

'', '' Potamogeton'', ''

Callitriche ''Callitriche'' is a genus of largely aquatic plants known as water-starwort. Previously, it was the only genus in the family Callitrichaceae. However, according to the APG II system this family is now included in the Plantaginaceae (plantain fa ...

'', ''

Ceratophyllum demersum ''Ceratophyllum demersum'', commonly known as hornwort, rigid hornwort, coontail, or coon's tail, is a species of ''Ceratophyllum''. It is a submerged, free-floating aquatic plant, with a cosmopolitan distribution, native to all continents except ...

'', '' Elodea canadensis'', ''

Nuphar lutea ''Nuphar lutea'', the yellow water-lily, brandy-bottle, or spadderdock, is an aquatic plant of the family ''Nymphaeaceae'', native to northern temperate and some subtropical regions of Europe, northwest Africa, western Asia, North America, and ...

'' and '' Stratiotes''.

Subspecies

*''Parapoynx stratiotata stratiotata'' *''Parapoynx stratiotata maroccanum'' Speidel, 1982 (Morocco)

References

External links

''Waarneming.nl''

Ringed china-mark at ''UKMoths''
Acentropinae Moths described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Moths of Europe {{Acentropinae-stub