The common marbled carpet (''Dysstroma truncata'') is a
moth of the family
Geometridae. It is sometimes placed in the genus ''
Chloroclysta
''Chloroclysta'' is a genus of moths in the family Geometridae erected by Jacob Hübner
Jacob Hübner (20 June 1761 – 13 September 1826, in Augsburg) was a German entomologist. He was the author of ''Sammlung Europäischer Schmetterlinge'' ( ...
''. It is very common 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 and the
Near East
The ''Near East''; he, המזרח הקרוב; arc, ܕܢܚܐ ܩܪܒ; fa, خاور نزدیک, Xāvar-e nazdik; tr, Yakın Doğu is a geographical term which roughly encompasses a transcontinental region in Western Asia, that was once the hist ...
. The species was
first described by
Johann Siegfried Hufnagel in 1767.
This is one of the most variable of the geometrids both in size (
wingspan 32–39 mm) and colour. The basal and terminal areas of the forewings are marked with
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. ...
separated by a large plain area in the middle, but the colouration of all these areas is confusingly variable from white to black with various grey, brown and reddish tones in between. The hindwings, though, are always pale grey marked with faint fascia. Some forms closely resemble ''
Dysstroma citrata
''Dysstroma citrata'', the dark marbled carpet or northern marbled carpet, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was Species description, first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1761. It is found across the Holarctic ecozone and has been ...
''.
[Prout, L. B. (1912–16). Geometridae. In A. Seitz (ed.) ''The Macrolepidoptera of the World''. The Palaearctic Geometridae, 4. 479 pp. Alfred Kernen, Stuttgar]
pdf
/ref>
One or two broods are produced each year and the adults can be seen in any month from May to November. The species flies at night and is attracted to light. It is also attracted to nectar-rich flowers and sugary foods which is fairly unusual for the family.
The larva is slender and green, usually with reddish stripes. It has been recorded feeding on a wide range of plants (see list below). The species overwinters as a larva.
# ''The flight season refers to the British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range.''
Recorded food plants
*''Alnus'' - alder
*''Betula'' - birch
*''Crataegus'' - hawthorn
*''Fragaria'' - strawberry
The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...
*''Ligustrum'' - privet
*''Lonicera'' - honeysuckle
*''Prunus'' - bird cherry
Bird cherry is a common name for the European plant '' Prunus padus''.
Bird cherry may also refer to:
* ''Prunus'' subg. ''Padus'', a group of species closely related to ''Prunus padus''
* ''Prunus avium'', the cultivated cherry, with the Latin e ...
*''Rosa'' - rose
*'' Rubus'' - bramble
*''Rumex
The docks and sorrels, genus ''Rumex'', are a genus of about 200 species of annual, biennial, and perennial herbs in the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae.
Members of this genus are very common perennial herbs with a native almost worldwide distribu ...
'' - dock
*''Salix'' - willow
*''Sorbus'' - rowan
The rowans ( or ) or mountain-ashes are shrubs or trees in the genus ''Sorbus
''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' (''s.l.'') are commonly known as whitebeam, r ...
*'' Vaccinium''
*'' Parthenocissus quinquefolia'' - Virginia creeper
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
Common marbled carpet at ''UKMoths''
''Lepiforum e.V.''
Cidariini
Moths described in 1767
Geometrid moths of Great Britain
Moths of Europe
Moths of Asia
Taxa named by Johann Siegfried Hufnagel
{{Cidariini-stub