| | Insects of Britain and Ireland: the genera of Lepidoptera-Noctuidae |
Adults. Head rough. Eyes hairy; not ciliated. Antennae of males ciliate.
Wingspan 36–50 mm. Thorax coloured like the forwings, the abdomen like the hindwings. Forewings dark fuscous; fuscous; complexly patterned; the patterning well marked to obscure (with confused marblings and mottlings); reniform defined (light-outlined); orbicular defined; claviform defined. Hindwings fuscous, or grey; terminally darkened; with a clear discal mark; without transverse lines; exhibiting vein 5. Vein 5 of the hindwings weak; arising nearer to vein 6 than to vein 4. Thorax crested (front and back). Posterior tibiae without spines (?). Abdomen crested.
Living adults found May to August.
Larvae, pupae. Larvae feeding on Brassica species, boring very damagingly into the 'hearts' of commercial varieties; pupating in the soil.
British representation. 1 species; South-east England, Central-southern England, South-west England, English Midlands, Northern England, Southern Scotland, Northern Scotland, Wales, and Ireland (very common); brassicae (Cabbage Moth).
Hadeninae.
Illustrations. • Hadeninae: M. brassicae (Cabbage Moth), and 8 related genera: Newman. 1(a) and (b), Anarta myrtillae (Beautiful Yellow Underwing); 2, Anarta melanopa (Broad-bordered White Underwing); 3, Anarta cordigera (Small Dark Yellow Underwing); 4, Discestra trifolii (The Nutmeg); 5(a) and (b), Polia nebulosa (Grey Arches, normal forms); 5(c) and (d), Polia nebulosa (Grey Arches, varieties); 6, Polia trimaculosa (Silvery Arches); 7, Polia bombycina (Pale-shining Brown); 8, Pachetra sagittigera britannica (Feathered Ear); 9, Sideridis albicolon (White Colon); 10, Melanchra persicariae (The Dot); 11, Hada plebeja (The Shears); 12, Heliophobus reticulata (Bordered Gothic); 13, MAMESTRA brassicae (Cabbage Moth). From Newman, 1869. • Noctuinae and Hadeninae: Kirby 35. NOCTUINAE. 1,Rhacia simulans (True Lover's Knot); 2, Acylia putris (Flame); 3, Agrotis exclamationis (Heart and Dart); 4, Euxoa tritica (White Line Dart); 5, Agrotis ipsilon (Dark Sword-grass); 6, Agrotis segetum (Common Dart, or Turnip Moth); 7, Agrotis vestigialis (Archer's Dart); 8, Ochropleura praecox (Portland Moth); 9, Anaplectoides prasina (Green Arches); 10, Eurois occulta (Great Brocade). HADENINAE. 11, Cerapteryx graminis (Antler Moth); 12, Tholera decimalis (Feathered Gothic); 13, Pacheta sagittigera (Feathered Ear); 14, Polia bombycina (Pale Shining Brown); 15, Polia trimaculosa (Silvery Arches); 16, Polia nebulosa (Grey Arches); 17, Lacanobia contigua (Beautiful Brocade); 18, Ceramica pisi (Broom Moth); 19, Mamestra brassicae (Cabbage Moth); 20, Melanchra persicariae (Dot). • neuration: Hadeninae (Mamestra brassicae).
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-Noctuidae. Version: 14th February 2021. delta-intkey.com’.
