| Flounced Rustic (Luperina testacea (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775)) |
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Scientific name: Luperina testacea (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775) Common name: Flounced Rustic French name: Avare, Lupérine testacée. Order: Lepidoptera Suborder: Heterocera Family: Noctuidae Subfamily: Amphipyrinae Wingspan: 30-35 mm. Biotope: Various habitats with many graminae. Geographic area: Temperate Europe, North Africa. Flight time: August to September. Number of generations : 1 Caterpillar: Greyish white with an orange head. The cephalic plate and the last segment are a darker blackish grey colour. Host plant: Roots of various graminae species. |
The Flounced Rustic is variable in colour, from greyish beige to dark reddish brown. The head and the base of the wings are hairy. There is always the same pattern on the fore wings but it is sometimes difficult to see. You can generally distinguish one darker median cross stripe between paler basal and submarginal areas. The submarginal area may show some black scales along the longitudinal veins. There is often a longitudinal black marking, resembling the capital letter I, next to the discal spots. There is a possible confusion with the Sandhill Rustic (Luperina nickerlii). You can tell this last species apart with the pure white markings at the base and at the marginal side of the reniform spot. The pale patches inside the reniform spot of Luperina testacea are not so white, especially on the base side. The Flounced Rustic over winters as a caterpillar. |
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I have hesitated to tell this one as Luperina nickerlii but the inside of the reniform spot shows cream-coloured areas instead of pure white. |
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Side view. |
André Bon October 2013