Description
The wingspan is 21–26 mm. Forewing blackish, dusted with pale grey scales especially in basal and marginal areas, the median being darker, or even black; inner and outer lines deep black; reniform stigma large and white with a grey lunule in it ; orbicular small, grey and obscure; hindwing yellow with a broad black marginal border, the costal margin grey; ab. ''variegata'' Tutt is a rare form, in which the dark median area is traversed by a grey band between the stigmata, the space between outer and submarginal line filled in with black to form a fascia, and another following the basal line; — in ''suffusa'' Tutt the whole wing is black except the pale marginal area and the white reniform; — ''aethiops'' Hofm. has the entire wing black except the stigma; — while ''carbonaria'' Christ, from Siberia resembles aethiops above, but the underside of forewing is yellow with the marginal areas dark. — Larva purplish-red : dorsal line pale yellow, with dark oblique streaks beyond segment 4, meeting on the dorsum; subdorsal lines obscurely paler; spiracular line yellow with a black upper edge; spiracles yellow, each accompanied by a yellow blotch; sometimes the larva is wholly blackish, with the markings all obscured. Warren. W. in 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, 1914Biology
The caterpillars feed on '' Vaccinium uliginosum'' and '' Arctostaphylos uva-ursi''. The flight period is April to May -later at high altitudes.References
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