| | Insects of Britain and Ireland: the genera of Lepidoptera-Noctuidae |
Miana Stephens, Procus Oken, Procus Agassiz
Adults. Head rough. Eyes glabrous; not ciliated. Antennae of males ciliate.
Wingspan 22–28 mm. Forewings blackish and whitish, grey, light brown, ochreous, dark brown or reddish brown; neither green nor greenish tinged; neither purplish nor rosy marked or tinged; complexly patterned; the patterning well marked, or obscure; reniform defined; orbicular defined; claviform defined, or undefined. Hindwings fuscous, or grey to blackish; plain; without 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 rear). Middle tibiae without spines. Posterior tibiae without spines. Abdomen crested.
Living adults found June and July.
Larvae, pupae. Larvae posteriorly tapered; feeding on grasses, in and on stems and shoots; pupating in the soil.
British representation. 4 species; South-east England, Central-southern England, South-west England, English Midlands, Northern England, Southern Scotland, Northern Scotland, Wales, and Ireland (common); fasciuncula (Middle-barred Minor), latruncula (Tawny Marbled Minor), strigilis (Marbled Minor), versicolor (Rufous Minor).
Amphipyrinae.
Illustrations. • O. strigilis (Marbled Minor) and O. fasciuncula (Middle-barred Minor), with 7 related genera: Newman. 1, Enargia paleacea (Angle-striped Sallow); 2, Parastichtis ypsillon (The Dismal, Dingy Shears); 3, Dicycla oo (The Heart Moth); 4, Mesoligia literosa (Rosy Minor); 5,(a)-(c), Mesoligia furuncula (Cloaked Minor); 6, Eremobia ochroleuca (Dusky Sallow); 7(a)-(c), Cosmia trapezina (The Dun-bar); 8, Cosmia affinis (Lesser-spotted Pinion); 9, Cosmia pyralina (Lunar-spotted Pinion); 10, Cosmia diffinis (White-spotted Pinion); 11, Hyppa rectilinea (The Saxon); 12(a)-(d), Oligia strigilis (Marbled Minor); 13, Oligia fasciuncula (Middle-barred Minor); 14(a)-(e), Mesapamea secalis (Common Rustic). From Newman, 1869. • Oligia strigilis (Marbled Minor: melanics, photos). 1, Oligia fasciuncula (Middle-barred Minor); 2–4, probably all Oligia strigilis (Marbled Minor, melanics: identifications unreliable, without examining the genitalia). Only melanic individuals tentatively referred to O. strigilis (e.g., 3 and 4) were seen in the Leek district (habitats rural, but only 10 and 30 miles respectively from Stoke-on-Trent and Manchester) during the decade 1948–1958, no “normal” specimens being seen; probably reflecting drift to predominant industrial melanism from the pre-existing rural melanism described and illustrated by Newman in 1869 (cf. the preceeding illustration).
1, Leek, Staffs, July 1956; 2, Trentham, Stoke-on-Trent, July 1951 (R.G. Warren); 3 and 4, Leek, June 1957. From Watson's collection. • O. strigilis, with Cuculliinae, Amphipyrinae and Noctuinae: Kirby. CUCULLIINAE. 1,Dryobotodes eremita (Brindled Green); 2, Dichonia aprilina (Merveille-du-Jour); 3, Lamprosticta culta; 4, Meganephria bimaculosa (Double-spot Brocade); 5, Allophyes oxyacanthae (Green-brindled Crescent); 6, Valeria oleagina (Green Brindled Dot); 10, Blepharita satura (Beautiful Arches); 11, Eremobia ochroleuca (Dusky Sallow); 22, Hyppa rectilinea (Clouded Brocade); 23, Auchmis detersa. AMPHIPYRINAE. 7, Luperina testacea (Flounced Rustic); 8, Thalophila matura (Straw Underwing); 9, Calamia tridens virens (Burren Green); 12, Apamea lateritia (Scarce Brindle); 13, Apamea monoglypha (Dark Arches); 14, Apamea lithoxylaea (Light Arches); 15, Apamea sordens (Rustic Shoulder-knot); 16, Apamea crenata (Clouded-bordered Brindle); 17, Apamea remissa (Dusky Brocade); 18, Mesapamea secalis (Common Rustic); 19, Oligia strigilis (Marbled Minor); 20, Mesoligia furuncula (Cloaked Minor); 21, Dypterygia scabriuscula (Bird's Wing); 25, Callopistria juventina; 26, Polyphaenis sericata. NOCTUINAE. 24, Actinotia polyodon (Purple Cloud). From Kirby 40, with names updated. • Larvae and pupa of O. strigilis: Duponchel and Guénée (1849). Noctuidae. Oligia strigilis (Marbled Minor). Duponchel and Guénée, 1849.
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’.
