73.247 : 2186 : 10,048
Noctuide : Hadeninae

Powdered Quaker

ORTHOSIA (Cororthosia) gracilis ([Denis & Schiffermüller],1775)
Picture
Life Cycle Guide
Picture
Description
Wingspan: 35 - 42mm
Worldwide Distribution: Europe - not Greece and some Mediterranean Islands - East across the Palearctic to Northern Asia and Central Asia
UK Distribution: England,Wales,Isle of Man,Ireland - Common and widespread : Scotland - local : Channel Islands - rare
UK Conservation Status -
  • Common = > 300 10Km squares
European Conservation Status -
  • Least Concern
Original Species Name -
  • Phalaena (Nocua) gracilis (Denis & Schiffermüller), 1775)
Type Species - Orthosia
  • Noctua instabilis (Denis & Schiffermüller,[1775])
Type Locality -
  • Austria - near vienna
Flight Period: South - March to early June : Elsewhere - April to May
Habitat: (Damp Woodland : Gardens : Bogs - Southern England) : Bog Myrtle feeders - Marshes & Bogs Only
Similar Species -
  • Common Quaker - Orthosia cerasi (Fabricius, 1775)
  • Clouded Drab - Orthosia incerta (Hufnagel, 1766)
Larva: The 44mm final instar larva is either medium green or brown with thin white dorsal and subdorsal lines,the latter sometimes indistinct.There is a green or brown(as larva) lighter than body band that follows the spiracles and is edged with thin white line both sides of the band.Above this band there are white freckles covering the larva.Head in light brown or green and the spriracles are white finely edged in black.
Pupa: Pupates in a cocoon under the soil for overwintering
Overwinters as: Pupa
Observations: The moth ground colour varies from whitish through the browns and pinkish mauve to black with freckling which gives it its powdered look, separating this moth from other spring species.Thie colour variations tend to be geographical. The stigmata and orbicular spot are clearly defined in black and the postmedial line is made up of a series of black dots. The subterminal line is black edged in whitish and the terminal line is black.
The wing appears quite long and has a straight costa and sharp apex.

The moth is attracted to light and to sugar and feeds on Sallow Catkins.
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.

Larval Food Plants
Taxonomy
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Type Species - ORTHOSIA:

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Subspecies:
Animalia
Eumetozoa
Arthropoda
Hexapoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Noctuoidea
Noctuidae
Hadeninae
Orthosiini
ORTHOSIA Ochsenheimer 1816
Cororthosia Berio, 1980
Orthosia (Coorthosia) gracilis (Denis & Schiffermüller), 1775)
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Noctua instabilis (Denis & Schiffermüller,[1775])
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PHALAENA (Nocua) gracilis (Denis & Schiffermüller), 1775)
= Phalaena (Noctua) lepida Brahm, 1791
= Bombyx sparsus Haworth, 1803
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Ankündung eines systematischen Werkes von den Schmetterlingen der Wienergegend: Title Page :  p.76 - n 4
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Austria - near Vienna
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O. g. pallidior (Staudinger, 1888) - China - Xingjiang