Hadena caesia
Encyclopedia
The Grey is a species of moth
of the Noctuidae
family. It has a scattered distribution all over Europe
(see subspecies section).
The wingspan
is 32–37 mm (1.3–1.5 in). Adults are on wing from June to August.
The young larvae feed on capsules of various Silene
species (including Silene nutans and Silene vulgaris
). Later, they feed on the leaves. They overwinter as a pupa.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Noctuidae
Noctuidae
The Noctuidae or owlet moths are a family of robustly-built moths that includes more than 35,000 known species out of possibly 100,000 total, in more than 4,200 genera. They constitute the largest family in the Lepidoptera....
family. It has a scattered distribution all over Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
(see subspecies section).
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 32–37 mm (1.3–1.5 in). Adults are on wing from June to August.
The young larvae feed on capsules of various Silene
Silene
Silene is a genus of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae. Common names include campion and catchfly....
species (including Silene nutans and Silene vulgaris
Silene vulgaris
Silene vulgaris, Silene cucubalus or Bladder Campion is a plant species of the genus Silene of the Pink Family . It is native to Europe, where in some parts it is eaten, but is widespread in North America where it is considered a weed..-Gastronomy:In Spain, the young shoots and the leaves are used...
). Later, they feed on the leaves. They overwinter as a pupa.
Subspecies
- ssp. caesia (Denis&Schiffermüller, 1775) (AlpsAlpsThe Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
) - ssp. abruzzensis (Draudt, 1934) (Apennine MountainsApennine mountainsThe Apennines or Apennine Mountains or Greek oros but just as often used alone as a noun. The ancient Greeks and Romans typically but not always used "mountain" in the singular to mean one or a range; thus, "the Apennine mountain" refers to the entire chain and is translated "the Apennine...
) - ssp. ostrogovichi (Hacker, 1989) (Carpathian MountainsCarpathian MountainsThe Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
) - ssp. bulgarica (Boursin, 1959) (BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
) - ssp. xanthophoba (Schawerda, 1922) (Balkan Peninsula)
- ssp. mananii (Gregson, 1866) (Great BritainGreat BritainGreat Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
) - ssp. frigida (Zetterstedt, 1839) (southern FennoscandiaFennoscandiaFennoscandia and Fenno-Scandinavia are geographic and geological terms used to describe the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula, Karelia and Finland...
) - ssp. grisea (Hospital, 1948) (mountains of northern SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) - ssp. revolcadorensis (Calle, 1983) (the Region of MurciaRegion of MurciaThe Region of Murcia is an autonomous community of Spain located in the southeast of the country, between Andalusia and Valencian Community, on the Mediterranean coast....
) - ssp. castiliana (Reisser, 1935) (Castile regionCastile (historical region)A former kingdom, Castile gradually merged with its neighbours to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain when united with the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Navarre...
)