Flame Shoulder
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
| Flame Shoulder | ||||||||||||||
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| Ochropleura plecta Linnaeus, 1761 |
The Flame Shoulder (Ochropleura plecta) is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is distributed throughout Europe.
The forewings of this species are reddish brown with a black streak interrupted by white stigmata and a creamy-yellow streak along the costa which gives the species its common name. The hindwings are pure white. The wingspan is 28-34 mm. Two broods are produced each year with adults flying from April to June and again in August and September. It flies at night and is attracted to light and sugar and also to the flowers of ragwort.
The larva, grey with a yellow stripe along each side, feeds on a range of herbaceous plants including bedstraw, dock, groundsel and plantain. This species overwinters as a pupa.
Subspecies
- O. p. plecta - Europe except Iberian Peninsula
- O. p. unimacula - Iberian Peninsula
External link
Flame Shoulder at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera pages (http://www.funet.fi/pub/sci/bio/life/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/noctuoidea/noctuidae/noctuinae/ochropleura/index.html#plecta)
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
