''Oligia latruncula'', the tawny marbled minor, is a species of
moth belonging to the family
Noctuidae
The Noctuidae, commonly known as owlet moths, cutworms or armyworms, are a family of moths. They are considered the most controversial family in the superfamily Noctuoidea because many of the clades are constantly changing, along with the other f ...
. The species was
first described by
Michael Denis and
Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775. It is distributed throughout Europe from northern
Scotland and middle
Fennoscandia
__NOTOC__
Fennoscandia (Finnish language, Finnish, Swedish language, Swedish and no, Fennoskandia, nocat=1; russian: Фенноскандия, Fennoskandiya) or the Fennoscandian Peninsula is the geographical peninsula in Europe, which includes ...
in the north and then south to central
Spain,
Sicily and
Greece. In the east, the species ranges to
Western Asia. In the
Alps it rises to an altitude of 2000 meters.
This species is extremely similar to the
marbled minor (''Oligia strigilis'') and the
rufous minor
''Oligia versicolor'', the rufous minor, is a species of moth belonging to the family Noctuidae. The species was Species description, first described by Moritz Balthasar Borkhausen in 1792. It is distributed throughout Europe from Bulgaria up to t ...
(''Oligia versicolor'') and specific identification usually requires close study of the
genitalia. See Townsend et al. for genitalia images and an identification key. With a
wingspan of 24–27 mm, ''O. latruncula'' is usually the smallest of the three, although they all overlap in size. Well-marked specimens often have noticeably dark forewings, with a blackish basal area and a coppery brown, rather than whitish, subterminal band. However,
melanism is very common in this species and all-dark specimens constitute 100% of the population in some areas. ''O. latruncula'' flies at night from May to August and is attracted to light and sugar.
The
larva feeds internally on the stems of various
grasses including ''
Calamagrostis'' and ''
Dactylis
''Dactylis'' is a genus of Eurasian and North African plants in the bluegrass subfamily within the grass family. ''Dactylis'' is native to North Africa, they are found throughout the world, and are an invasive species. They are known in Englis ...
'',
ting in a cocoon among the roots. This species overwinters as a larva.
# ''The flight season refers to the
British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range.''
References
*
Skinner, Bernard (1984). ''
The Colour Identification Guide to Moths of the British Isles
''The Colour Identification Guide to Moths of the British Isles (Macrolepidoptera)'' by Bernard Skinner is a single volume identification guide to the macromoths of Britain and Ireland published by Viking Books, often referred by moth recorders ...
''.
External links
*
* Taxonomy
''Lepiforum e.V.''Includes photographs of
genitalia''De Vlinderstichting''
{{Taxonbar , from=Q1266120
Oligia
Moths described in 1775
Moths of Europe
Moths of Asia