A. litura L. (37 g). Forewing bluish grey or violet grey, the basal half slightly paler; the lines all marked by black spots on costa, the submarginal with an oblique bar; inner and outer lines dark, obscurely double, with pale centres; stigmata large with pale annuli, the reniform generally with darker centre; hindwing dull fuscous; — polluta Esp. (37 g) is the large dark form; — ornatrix Hbn. (37 h) a small dark form; both with the costal spots well-developed; — borealis Sp.-Schn. (= saturata Schultze) has the basal half of wing prominently pale; — meridionalis Stgr., a Southern race [now full species ], is paler, bluish-grey or yellowish-grey with prominent grey brown or red-brown median shade; — ochreata Spul., from Central Europe, is purplish grey with a yellow tinge, the basal half often whitish ochreous; — in rufa Tutt (37 h) the ground colour is reddish brown instead of purple grey; ab. luteogrisea ab. nov. (37 h), from Amasia, is pale stone colour, with distinct but not prominent markings, the underside paler. Larva grey, brown, or reddish; dorsal line pale, generally with several fine lines close to it;spiracular line white with the lower edge yellow; head brown; thoracic and anal plates dark green with 3 white lines.
[1] The wingspan is 38–35 mm.
Figs. 4, 4a, 4b larva after last moult
Biology
The moth flies from September to October depending on the location.
^Warren. W. in Seitz, A. Ed., 1914 Die Großschmetterlinge der Erde, Verlag Alfred Kernen, Stuttgart Band 3: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes, Die palaearktischen eulenartigen Nachtfalter, 1914 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
