| | Insects of Britain and Ireland: the genera of Lepidoptera-Geometridae |
Adults. Nocturnal (readily attracted to light); relatively stout-bodied (in the female), or slender-bodied. Antennae of males bipectinate; bipectinate to the apex. Face smooth.
Wingspan 50–64 mm. Forewings 1.4–1.5 times as long as wide. The outer margin of the forewing convexly curved. Forewings green; with a clear discal mark (this darker green, linear); without a median band. The outer margin of the hindwings scalloped. Hindwings conspicuously patterned; green; predominantly green when fresh; with a clear discal mark (this darker green); transversely lined (second and subterminal lines whitish, waved or dotted).
Vein 10 of the forewings arising out of vein 9. Hindwings exhibiting a tubular vein 5. Vein 5 of the hindwings arising from well above the middle of the transverse vein. Vein 8 of the hindwings shortly anastomosed basally with the upper margin of the cell, thence rapidly diverging. Hindwing veins 6 and 7 separate.
Posterior tibiae of males 4-spurred.
Early stages. Larvae feeding on foliage of Betula, Corylus and Fagus, both before and after hibernation. Pupae on the surface of the ground (in a flimsy silken web, among dead leaves).
British representation. 1 species; South-east England, Central-southern England, South-west England, English Midlands, Northern England, Southern Scotland, Northern Scotland, Wales, and Ireland (rather common). Living adults found in July. G. papilionaria (Large Emerald).
Subfamily. Geometrinae.
Illustrations. • Geometra papilionaria (Large Emerald: Shaw and Nodder, about 1812). • Geometra papilionaria (Large Emerald: Shaw and Nodder, text). • Geometrinae (‘Emeralds’): Kirby 44 (part). GEOMETRINAE. 12, Aplasta ononaria (Rest Harrow); 13, Chlorissa viridata (Small Grass Emerald); 14, Pseudoterpna pruinata (Grass Emerald); 15, Geometra papilionaria (Large Emerald); 16, Jodis lactearia (Small Emerald); 17, Comibaena bajularia (Blotched Emerald); 18, Thetidea smaragdaria (Essex Emerald); 19, Hemithea aestivaria (Common Emerald); 20, Thalera fimbrialis (Sussex Emerald); 21, Jodis lactearia (Little Emerald). • Geometrinae: Newman (1869). 1, Aplasta ononaria (The Rest Harrow); 2, Pseudoterpna pruinata (Grass Emerald); 3, Comibaena bajularia (Blotched Emerald); 4, Geometra papilionaria (Large Emerald); 5, Thetidia smaragdaria (Essex Emerald); 6, Jodis lactearia (Little Emerald); 7, Chlorissa viridata (Small Grass Emerald); 8, Hemistola chrysoprasaria (Small Emerald); 9, Hemithea aestivaria (Common Emerald). From Newman (1869). • neuration: Geometriinae, Archiearinae, Larentiinae.
We advise against extracting comparative information from the descriptions. This is much more easily achieved using the DELTA data files or the interactive key, which allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, and distributions of character states within any set of taxa. See also Guidelines for using data taken from Web publications.
Cite this publication as: ‘Watson, L., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2003 onwards. Insects of Britain and Ireland: the genera of Lepidoptera-Geometridae. Version: 14th February 2021. delta-intkey.com’.
