Clouded border

Clouded border
Lomaspilis.marginata. Dorsal view
Lomaspilis marginata. Ventral view
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Geometridae
Genus: Lomaspilis
Species: L. marginata
Binomial name
Lomaspilis marginata
Linnaeus, 1758
Synonyms
  • Abraxas marginata Alphéraky, 1897
  • Lomaspilis marginata amurensis Beljaev & Vasilenko, 2002

The clouded border (Lomaspilis marginata) is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is distributed across most of Europe to the Urals, West Siberia, Central Siberia, Transbaikalia, Kazakhstan, Tian-Shan , North Mongolia and parts of the Near East.

Larva

This is a very distinctive species with white wings marked with black blotches around the margins. The amount of black varies, with the males usually (though not always) having more extensive black areas than the females. Occasionally almost entirely white or black individuals are seen, although this is rare. The wingspan is 24–28 mm. Lomaspilis marginata is "Extremely variable. Linne's form has complete black border to both wings, also on the forewing additional spots or patches at base and middle of costa.

Aberrations:

It flies at night in June and July and is attracted to light.

The egg is yellow-green, with hexagonal reticulation. The larva, pale green with darker dorsal lines and a purplish anal spot, usually feeds on aspen and sallow but has also been recorded on birch, hazel and poplar. The species overwinters as a pupa, sometimes remaining in this form for up to four years.

Subspecies

  1. ^ The flight season refers to the British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range.

References

  1. Prout , L.B. 1912–16. Geometridae. In A. Seitz (ed.) The Macrolepidoptera of the World. The Palaearctic Geometridae, 4. 479 pp. Alfred Kernen, Stuttgart.

External links

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