Mesapamea secalis
Encyclopedia
The Common Rustic is a moth
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 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....

 family. It is found in 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...

, North-West Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 and Northern Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

.
The species was formerly considered the same species as the Lesser Common Rustic Mesapamea didyma and Remm's Rustic Mesapamea remmi. All three were raised to species level.

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 27-30 mm. Adults are on wing from July to August depending on the location.

The larvae feed on the stems of various grasses, including Gramineae, Phleum
Phleum
Phleum is a genus of about 15 species of annual and perennial grasses. The genus is native to Europe, Asia and north Africa, with one species Phleum (catstail or timothy-grass) is a genus of about 15 species of annual and perennial grasses. The genus is native to Europe, Asia and north Africa,...

and Alopecurus
Alopecurus
Alopecurus L., or Foxtail Grass, is a genus of the grass family Poaceae with 25 to 35 species.Foxtails occur in northern temperate regions. They can be annual or perennial. They grow in tufts. They have flat leaves and blunt ligules...

species, Triticum aestivum, Secale cereale, Elytrigia repens, Elymus arenarius, Dactylis glomerata
Dactylis glomerata
Dactylis glomerata, Cock's-foot and orchard grass, is a common species of grass in the genus Dactylis, native throughout most of Europe, temperate Asia, and northern Africa.-Distribution:...

and Festuca arundinacea
Festuca arundinacea
Festuca arundinacea is a species of fescue commonly known as Tall fescue. It is a cool-season perennial C3 species of bunchgrass native to Europe. It is an important forage grass throughout Europe, and many cultivars have been used in agriculture...

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