''Thera variata'', the spruce carpet, 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. It is found throughout

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

North Asia North Asia or Northern Asia, also referred to as Siberia, is the northern region of Asia, which is defined in geographical terms and is coextensive with the Asian part of Russia, and consists of three Russian regions east of the Ural Mountains: ...

and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The common name spruce carpet is also used when referring to '' Thera britannica''. The length of the forewings is 13–17 mm. The forewings are light ochreous-brown, sprinkled with dark fuscous with an ochreous-brown basal patch the edge waved, right-angled above middle; The median band is ochreous-brown or dark fuscous, black-marked on veins, edges dark fuscous, sometimes whitish-margined its anterior angulated in middle and its posterior waved, right-angled above middle. There is a black discal mark, a subterminal line obscurely whitish and a cloudy darker apical dash. The hindwings are pale fuscous, ochreous tinged with a darker discal dot and sometimes a curved postmedian line. The larva is blue-green; dorsal line darker, pale edged; subdorsal yellowish-white, posteriorly yellow; subspiracular yellowish-white; segment 13 with two points.Meyrick, E., 1895 ''A Handbook of British Lepidoptera'' MacMillan, Londo
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Keys and description

Similar species

Itself variable, ''Thera variata'' closely resembles some forms of ''

Thera obeliscata ''Thera obeliscata'', the grey pine carpet, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is found throughout north and central Europe and east across the Palearctic to Siberia, and south to the Caucasus and Transcaucasia. In the Alps it can be found a ...

''. In case of doubt, specialists should be consulted for determination.

Biology

The moth flies in two generations from mid April to mid October . The larva feeds on

spruce 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 ...

and other

Pinophyta Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All extan ...

Notes

#''The flight season refers to

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

and

The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. This may vary in other parts of the range.''

References

External links

Fauna EuropaeaLepiforum.deVlindernet.nl
Cidariini Moths of Japan Moths of Europe Moths of Asia Moths described in 1775 Taxa named by Michael Denis Taxa named by Ignaz Schiffermüller {{Cidariini-stub