73.350 : 2137 : 10,161
Noctuidae : Nocuinae

Great Brocade

EUROIS occulta (Linnaeus, 1758)
Picture
Kind permission - © Tim Norriss
Life Cycle Guide - Green/Grey - Europe : Grey - UK
Picture
Description
Wingspan:
Worldwide Distribution: Europe - less Croatia,Greece,Portugal,Slovenia & most Mediterranean Islands eastwards to Siberia : Caucasus : C.Asia : Mongolia : China : Tibet : Korea : Japan : N America - Alaska, Alberta, Saskatchevan, Ontario, S.Canada, Newfoundland, New Yersey, Maryland, N.Ohio, Wisconsin, Montana, Oregon, Rocky Mountains, New Mexico, Arizona, California.
UK Distribution: C & W Highlands Scotland to W coasts - Resident : Nationally scarce elsewhere through England,Wales and Scotland - small numbers : Ireland,Isle of Man - infrequent immigrant : Channel Isles - rare.
UK Conservation Status -
  • Nationally Scarce B (Nb - BAP : 1997) = 31 - 100 10Km Squares
European Conservation Status -
  • Least Concern
Original Species Name -
  • Phalaena occulta Linnaeus, 1758
Type Species -
  • Phalaena occulta Linnaeus, 1758
Type Locality -
  • Europe
Flight Period: July - August
Habitat: Scrubby Moorland : Broadleaved Woodland : Pine Forest
Similar Species -
  • Grey Arches - Polia nebulosa - (Hufnagel, 1766)
Larva: The 58mm final instar larva is dark purplish brown with a wavy broad yellowish spiracular line with is edged on top with black patches. There are thin whitish dorsal and subdorsal lines with infil between the two in darker brown and two black patches at sections 10 & 11.Some fine white spots are also located between the dorsal lines.Head is brown marked with black.
Pupa: Pupates in a silken cocoon beneath the soil
Overwinters as: Larva
Observations: The moth has relatively long and narrow forewings which help to identify this moth from similar dark noctuids.
The moth has two longitudinal black streaks in the basal region.
Resident populations are darker than those seen in Europe which are grey.
The similar species P.nebulosa has a more rounded orbicular spot and a paler hindwing.

Moth is attracted to light and sugar.
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 - EUROIS:

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Subspecies:
Animalia
Eumetozoa
Arthropoda
Hexapoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Noctuoidea
Noctuidae
Noctuinae
Noctuini
EUROIS Hübner, [1821]
Eurois occulta (Linnaeus, 1758)
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Phalaena occulta Linnaeus, 1758
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PHALAENA occulta Linnaeus, 1758
= Eurois occultus (Linnaeus, 1758)
= Phalaena (Noctua) occulta Linnaeus, 1758
= Hadena extricata Zetterstedt, [1839]
= Polia prolixa Zetterstedt, [1839]
= Polia puncticosta Zetterstedt, [1839]
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Syst. Nat. (Edn 10) 1 : Title page : p.514 n.101
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Europe
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E.o.implicata (Lefebvre, 1836) - Greenland