Noctuidae : Xyleninae
Feathered Ranunculus
POLYMIXIS (Eumichtis) lichenea (Hübner,[1813])
Subspecies
P.l.scillonea Richardson 1958 - Scily Isles
Feathered Ranunculus
POLYMIXIS (Eumichtis) lichenea (Hübner,[1813])
Subspecies
P.l.scillonea Richardson 1958 - Scily Isles
Kind permission - © Tim Norriss
Life Cycle Guide
Description
Wingspan: 39 - 43mm
Worldwide Distribution: Europe - only found in Great Britain,Balearic Isles,Canary Isles,Channel Isles,Corsica,Denmark,France,Germany, Ireland,Italy,Portugal,Sardinia,Sicily and Spain
UK Distribution: S & W coasts of of Britain to SW Scotland and Isle of Man - local : S & E coasts from Sussex to Yorkshire - more local : recorded mainly along E & SW Ireland coasts : Channel Isles - widespread and abundant : Some inland sites where the moth is local is Kent,S Devon,N Wales,Cheshire,Derbyshire & Warwickshire
UK Conservation Status -
Habitat: Rocky coastal cliffs : Sand-dunes : Vegetated Shingle : Limestone & Chalk slopes
Similar Species -
Pupa: Pupates underground in tough cocoon
Overwinters as: Larva
Observations: With the British subspecies P.l.lichenea the forewing is greyish green often with whitish grey freckling.Cross lines tend to be weak and broken mostly white with some black edging and well as the renifom stigmata and orbicular spot on some specimens are quite clear with black spots within.
The hindwing sometimes has a ark central line with bold black dashes around the margin,whitish in male,greyish in female.
The moth tends to be paler in the calcareous areas of southern England but darker in rocky western coasts.
The Scily Isles subspecies P.l.scillonea tends to be darker green with black freckles either with obscure markings or strongly marked with precise median areas and cross lines and pronounced stigmata and orbicular spot.
Attracted to light and to sugar
Worldwide Distribution: Europe - only found in Great Britain,Balearic Isles,Canary Isles,Channel Isles,Corsica,Denmark,France,Germany, Ireland,Italy,Portugal,Sardinia,Sicily and Spain
UK Distribution: S & W coasts of of Britain to SW Scotland and Isle of Man - local : S & E coasts from Sussex to Yorkshire - more local : recorded mainly along E & SW Ireland coasts : Channel Isles - widespread and abundant : Some inland sites where the moth is local is Kent,S Devon,N Wales,Cheshire,Derbyshire & Warwickshire
UK Conservation Status -
- Local = 101 - 300 10km squares
- Least Concern
- Phalaena lichenea (Hübner,[1813])
- Phalaena polymita (Linnaeus, 1761)
- Europe
Habitat: Rocky coastal cliffs : Sand-dunes : Vegetated Shingle : Limestone & Chalk slopes
Similar Species -
- Black-banded - Polymixis xanthomista - (Hübner, [1819])
- Large Ranunculus - Polymixis flavicincta - ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775)
Pupa: Pupates underground in tough cocoon
Overwinters as: Larva
Observations: With the British subspecies P.l.lichenea the forewing is greyish green often with whitish grey freckling.Cross lines tend to be weak and broken mostly white with some black edging and well as the renifom stigmata and orbicular spot on some specimens are quite clear with black spots within.
The hindwing sometimes has a ark central line with bold black dashes around the margin,whitish in male,greyish in female.
The moth tends to be paler in the calcareous areas of southern England but darker in rocky western coasts.
The Scily Isles subspecies P.l.scillonea tends to be darker green with black freckles either with obscure markings or strongly marked with precise median areas and cross lines and pronounced stigmata and orbicular spot.
Attracted to light and to sugar
Subspecies
P.l.lichenea (Hübner,[1813]) - Great Britain
P.l.lichenea (Hübner,[1813]) - Great Britain
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.
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.
- Boraginaceae - Borage - Forget-me-not Family
- Cynoglossum officinale - Hound's Tongue
- Brassicaceae - Mustards - Mustard Flowers - Crucifers - Cabbage Family
- Brassica oleraceae - Wild Cabbage
- Crassulaceae - Orpine Family
- Sedum acre - Common Stonecrop
- Plantaginaceae - Plantain Family
- Plantago maritima - Sea Plantain
- Plumbaginaeae - Plumbago & Leadworts
- Armeria maritima - Thrift - within roots
- Valerianaceae - Valerian Family
- Centranthus ruber - Red Valerian
- Centranthus ruber - Red Valerian
Larval Food Plants
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Taxonomy
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Kingdom:
Subkingdom: Phylum: Subphylum: Class: Order: Superfamily: Family: Subfamily: Tribe: Genus: Subgenus: Accepted Species Name: Type Species : POLYMIXIS: Original Species Name: Species Names: Literary Ref: Type Locality: Subspecies: |
Animalia
Eumetozoa Arthropoda Hexapoda Insecta Lepidoptera Noctuoidea Noctuidae Xyleninae Xylenini POLYMIXIS Hübner, 1820 Polymixis Hübner, 1820 Polymixis (Eumichtis) lichenea (Hübner,[1813]) - Phalaena polymita (Linnaeus, 1761) - NOCTUA lichenea (Hübner,[1813]) = Eumichtis lichenea scillonea Richardson, 1958 = Eumichtis lichenea septentrionalis Lempke, 1964 = Polia viridicincta Freyer, 1831 = Noctua tephra Geyer, [1832] = Epunda lichenea mirabilis Rungs, 1940 = Polymixis (Eumichtis) lichenea - Sammlung europäischer Schmetterlinge / errichtet von Jacob Hübner in Augsburg. 1761-1826 : Lepidoptera 1V : Noctua 11 : pl.122, f. 562-563 - Europe - P.l.lichenea (Hübner,[1813]) - Great Britain P.l.scillonea Richardson 1958 - Scily Isles |