| | Insects of Britain and Ireland: the genera of Lepidoptera-Noctuidae |
Including Cornutiplusia Kostrowicki
Adults. Head rough. Eyes glabrous; ciliated. Antennae of males shortly ciliate. Tongue well developed. Labial palps medium to long; ascending.
Wingspan 30–40 mm. Thorax coloured like the forewings, abdomen like the hindwings. Forewings light-and-dark grey; pale grey and grey; neither purplish nor rosy marked or tinged; very complexly patterned (marbled); the patterning well marked (including a silvery white, double median mark, cf. other plusias); exhibiting metallic-enamelled effects; reniform defined; orbicular defined. Hindwings light fuscous; terminally darkened; with a clear discal mark to without a clear discal mark; transversely lined to without transverse lines; exhibiting vein 5. Vein 5 of the hindwings strong; arising nearer to vein 4 than to vein 6; convergent on vein 4 near their bases. Thorax crested. Middle tibiae without spines. Posterior tibiae with spines; rough-scaled. Abdomen crested.
Living adults found June and July.
Larvae, pupae. Ventral prolegs 4, or 6 (?). Larvae feeding on Calluna, Vaccinium and Urtica; pupating on vegetative parts of the foodplant (in a white silken cocoon, on twigs or under leaves).
British representation. 2 species (one adventive); South-east England, Central-southern England, South-west England, English Midlands, Northern England, Southern Scotland, Northern Scotland, Wales, and Ireland (commoner northwards); circumflexa* (Essex Y, = Cornutoplusia), interrogationis (Scarce Silver Y).
Plusiinae.
Illustrations. • S. interrogationis (Scarce Silver Y), with other genera of Plusiinae: Newman. 1, Abrostola trigemina (Dark Spectacle); 2, Abrostola triplasia (The Spectacle, or Light Spectacle); 3, Trichoplusia ni (Ni Moth); 4, Diachrysia chrysitis (Burnished Brass); 5, Diachrysia orichalcea (Scarce Burnished Brass); 6, Plusia festucae (Gold Spot); 7, Autographa gamma (Silver Y); 8, Autographa jota (Plain Golden Y); 9, Autographa pulchrina (Beautiful Golden Y); 10, Autographa bractea (Gold Spangle); 11, SYNGRAPHA interrogationis (Scarce Silver Y). From Newman, 1869. • S. interrogationis and other species, with Cuculliinae and other Plusiinae: Kirby. CUCULLIINAE. 1, Cucullia verbasci (Mullein Shark); 2, Cucullia asteris (Starwort Shark); 3 and 5, Cucullia umbratica (Shark); 4, Cucullia lactucae (Lettuce Shark); 5, Cucullia umbratica (Shark); 6, Cucullia chamomillae (Chamomile Shark); 7, Cucullia artemisiae (Scarce Wormwood Shark); 8, Cucullia absinthii (Wormwood Shark); 9, Cucullia argentea (Green Silver-spangle); 10, Eutelia adulatrix; 11, Allophyes oxyacanthae ab. capucina (Green-brindled Crescent, var.); 12, Eucarta amethystina . PLUSIINAE. 13, Abrostola trigemina (Dark Spectacle); 14, Abrostola triplasia (Spectacle); 15, Lamprotes c-aureum; 16, Polychrysia moneta (Golden Plusia); 17, Euchalia consona; 18, Euchalcia modestoides; 19, Diachrysia chrysitis (Burnished Brass); 20, Autographa bractea (Gold Spangle); 21, Plusia festucae (Gold Spot); 22, Autographa jota (Plain Golden Y); 23, Autographa gamma (Silver Y); 24, Syngrapha interrogationis (Scarce Silver Y); 25, Syngrapha ain; 26, Syngrapha hochenwarthi. From Kirby 41.
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’.
