Cucullia lucifuga
Encyclopedia
Cucullia lucifuga is a species of moth
of the family Noctuidae
. It is found in north, central and southern Europe
east to Japan
. It is also present in Tibet
and Armenia
.
The wingspan
is 38–55 mm. There is one generation per year in the north, with adults on wing from May to June. In the warmer regions in the south, there is a second generation with adults on wing from July to August and a partial third generation with adults in October.
The larvae feed on various Asteraceae
and Compositae species, including Tussilago farfara, Petasites paradoxus, Cirsium arvense
, Centaurea phrygia
, Sonchus arvensis
, Hieracium umbellatum and Taraxacum
species.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the family Noctuidae
Noctuidae
The Noctuidae or owlet moths are a family of robustly-built moths that includes more than 35,000 known species out of possibly 100,000 total, in more than 4,200 genera. They constitute the largest family in the Lepidoptera....
. It is found in north, central and southern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
east to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. It is also present in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
and Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 38–55 mm. There is one generation per year in the north, with adults on wing from May to June. In the warmer regions in the south, there is a second generation with adults on wing from July to August and a partial third generation with adults in October.
The larvae feed on various Asteraceae
Asteraceae
The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...
and Compositae species, including Tussilago farfara, Petasites paradoxus, Cirsium arvense
Cirsium arvense
Cirsium arvense is a species of Cirsium, native throughout Europe and northern Asia, and widely introduced elsewhere. The standard English name in its native area is Creeping Thistle.-Alternate names:...
, Centaurea phrygia
Centaurea phrygia
Centaurea phrygia is a species of Centaurea. It is native to Europe....
, Sonchus arvensis
Sonchus arvensis
Sonchus arvensis is a medicinal plant. It is an invasive species in the Great Lakes region and was first sited in 1865.-External links:** Photos, Drawings, Text...
, Hieracium umbellatum and Taraxacum
Taraxacum
Taraxacum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. They are native to Eurasia and North America, and two species, T. officinale and T. erythrospermum, are found as weeds worldwide. Both species are edible in their entirety...
species.