Aspitates gilvaria
Aspitates gilvaria, the straw belle, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775. It is found from Europe to the eastern part of the Palearctic ecozone. Adults are on wing from July to August.
| Aspitates gilvaria | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Geometridae |
| Genus: | Aspitates |
| Species: | A. gilvaria |
| Binomial name | |
| Aspitates gilvaria (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775) | |
| Synonyms | |
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Description
The wingspan is 25–30 mm. The graduated buff coloured forewing has a red or brown diagonal slash from the wing tip to the inside edge. The hindwings are white with a faint diagonal grey streak and a dot on the upper surface. The male has combed antennae. The female is more mottled than the male and has less combed antennae.
Diet
The larvae feed on various herbaceous plants, including Potentilla, Thymus, Andromeda polifolia and possibly Empetrum nigrum, Rubus chamaemorus and Vaccinium uliginosum.
Subspecies
- Aspitates gilvaria gilvaria
- Aspitates gilvaria fenica (Fuchs, 1899)
- Aspitates gilvaria orientaria (Alphéraky, 1892)
- Aspitates gilvaria burrenensis Cockayne, 1951
- darker than the nominate subspecies with a longer hindwing stripe - found in the Burren, Ireland
Gallery
Antennae
