Pale Shoulder

Noctuide : Acontiinae

Pale Shoulder

ACONTIA (Acontia) lucida (Hufnagel, 1766)

Kind permission - © Tim Norriss

Life Cycle Guide - Europe

Description

Wingspan: 30 - 32mm
Worldwide Distribution: Europe - less (Belgium,Denmark,Estonia,Ireland,Latvia,Lithuania,Luxembourg,Norway,N & NW Russia & Sweden ) - eastwards to Iran and India
UK Distribution: Rare immigrant appearing in southern England
UK Conservation Status -

Rare Migrant

European Conservation Status -

Least Concern

Original Species Name -

Phalaena lucida (Hufnagel, 1766)

Type Species - Acontia

Noctua solaris Schiffermüller, 1775

Type Locality -

Germany - Berlin Region

Flight Period: Europe - May - June & July - August - two generations
Habitat: Hot Dry Flowery Open Places
Similar Species -

None

Larva: The 35mm final instar larva is reddish brown with a small dorsal hump on the eleventh segment with subdorsal black patch on fourth to sixth segments and to side of hump.There is a pale brown spiracular line.Head is brown.
Pupa: Overwinters as pupa
Overwinters as: Pupa
Observations: A rare migrant from southern Europe ranging eastwards to Iran and India, appearing occasionally in southern England.Between 1994 and 2004 there have been six records, one at Dymchurch,Kent on 5 August 1994: West Bexington, Dorset on 5 August 1994 : St Agnes,Cornwall on 10 August 1995 : Ringwood,Hampshire on 19 August 1996 : Sherbourne St. John,Hampshire on 13 August 2004.
The vernacular name for this moth is derived from the white basal area (Pale Shoulder) of the forewing.

Visits flowers in sunshine and is attracted to light.

Photo Gallery

Larval Food Plants Worldwide

Note - Plants hyperlinked in red below take the visitor to the relevant plant page on"Plants for a Future" website where further information like photos,physical characteristics,habitats,edible uses,medicinal uses,cultivation,propagation,range,height etc. are clearly listed.
Plant Families - in bold red below takes the visitor to the relevant "Lepi-plants" page where other butterflies & moths using the plants below are listed.

Convolvulaceae - Bindweed - Morning Glory Family
- Convolvulus arvensis - Field Bindweed
Lamiaceae - Labiatae - The Mint Family
- Glechoma hederacea - Ground Ivy
- Nepeta cataria - Catmint- Catnip
Malvaceaea - The Mallow Family
- Althaea officinalis - Marsh-mallow
- Malva neglecta - Dwarf-Mallow
- Malva pusilla - Small Mallow
- Malva sylvestris - Common Mallow

Larval Food Plants

Taxonomy

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Type Species - ACONTIA:

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Type Locality:

Animalia
Eumetozoa
Arthropoda
Hexapoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Noctuoidea
Noctuidae
Acontiinae
ACONTIA Ochsenheimer 1816
Acontia Ochsenheimer 1816
Acontia ( Acontia) lucida (Hufnagel, 1766)
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Noctua solaris Schiffermüller, 1775
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PHALAENA lucida (Hufnagel, 1766)
= Noctua solaris [Schiffermüller], 1775
= Noctua albicollis Fabricius, 1781
= Phalaena Noctua rupicola Borkhausen, 1792
= Noctua insolatrix Hübner, [1822]
= Acontia triradiata Walker, [1858]
= Tarache lucida
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Berlin. Magazin. 3 (3) : Title Page : p. 308 - n.62
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Germany-Berlin Region