Lycia zonaria

{{short description|Species of moth}}

{{Speciesbox

| image = Lycia zonaria - Pezinok.jpg

| image_upright =

| image_caption = male imago - Pezinok, Slovakia

| taxon = Lycia zonaria

| authority = (Dennis & Schiffermüller, 1775)

| synonyms = *Geometra zonaria Denis & Schiffermuller, 1775

  • Ithysia britannica Harrison, 1912
  • Ithysia rossica Harrison, 1910
  • Nyssia zonaria

}}

Lycia zonaria, the belted beauty, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775 and it is found in most of Europe.

Image:Lycia zonaria (HS) 14.JPG

Image:Lycia zonaria (HS) 10.JPG

Distribution

Lycia zonaria is found from central Europe, east to the Russian Urals. The populations in England and Wales are ssp. britannica, those from the Urals are ssp. rossica . The nominate subspecies is found in the south west of Spain and France, but is missing in the Mediterranean. The northern occurrence ranges to Denmark and southern Sweden.

Description

The wingspan is 27–30 mm. Females are wingless. Males are variable, but always easy to recognize. Characteristic are the dark veins and broad dark distal area, bounded proximally and traversed by sharply white lines. The female is distinguished by its yellowish abdominal belts. The rudimentary white wings are common to the genus.

Patrice Leraut: Geometrid moths. In: Moths of Europe. 1. Auflage. Band 2. NAP Editions, 2009, ISBN 978-2-913688-09-4 in English

Wikisource:The Moths of the British Isles Second Series/Chapter 10#296

Biology

Adult males are on wing from March to April.

The larvae feed on a range of low-growing plants, including Salix repens and Rosa pimpinellifolia.

The species is a typical resident of dry grassland, occurring at forest edges, sandy slopes and heaths.

Subspecies

  • Lycia zonaria zonaria
  • Lycia zonaria rossica (Harrison, 1910)
  • Lycia zonaria britannica (Harrison, 1912)

File:Lycia zonaria (HS) 01.JPG |Eggs

File:Moths of the British Isles Series2 Plate126.jpg|Larva and pupa

File:Lycia zonaria (HS) 02.JPG |Female

File:Lycia zonaria (HS) 06.JPG |Male and female copulation

File:Lycia zonaria (HS) 05.JPG |Head-on view

File:Moths of the British Isles Series2 Plate124.jpg|Related species

References

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