Dark Arches

Dark Arches
Dark Arches
Dark Arches (Apamea monoglypgha)
Dark Arches (Apamea monoglypgha) Mounted
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Noctuidae
Tribe: Apameini
Genus: Apamea
Species: A. monoglypha
Binomial name
Apamea monoglypha
(Hufnagel, 1766)
Synonyms
  • Phalaena monoglypha Hufnagel, 1766
  • Abromias monoglypha

The Dark Arches (Apamea monoglypha) is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is a common, sometimes abundant, European species. It is found in most of Europe except northernmost Fennoscandia and the southern parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Greece. The smaller subspecies sardoa is found on Sardinia and Corsica. The species is also found in Anatolia, Western Asia and central Asia. In the Alps it is found up to heights of 2,500 meters.

Puppa
Caterpillar

This is a fairly large species (wingspan 46-54 mm), the forewings varying from pale greyish brown to almost black and cryptically patterned. All but the darkest individuals usually have an obvious black mark close to the dorsum and a pale "zig-zag" subterminal line. The hindwings are whitish with darker venation and a dark shaded band at the margin. This moth flies at night from June to August with a second brood sometimes emerging in September and October [1]. It is attracted to light, sugar and many nectar-rich flowers.

The larva is pale with a black head and black spots. It feeds on various grasses including Deschampsia, Dactylis glomerata, Lolium Calamagrostis and Festuca species (including Festuca ovina). This species overwinters as a larva.

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

References

  • Chinery, Michael Collins Guide to the Insects of Britain and Western Europe 1986 (Reprinted 1991)
  • Skinner, Bernard Colour Identification Guide to the Moths of the British Isles 1984
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