Athetis hospes
| Athetis hospes | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Noctuidae |
| Genus: | Athetis |
| Species: | A. hospes |
| Binomial name | |
| Athetis hospes (Freyer, 1835)[1] | |
| Synonyms | |
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Athetis hospes, Porter's Rustic, is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It was described by Freyer in 1835. It is found in Spain, southern France, Italy, on the Balkan Peninsula and Crete and in Turkey and northern Iran. Recently, the species seems to be expanding its range in north-western Europe with records from Great Britain and the Netherlands.
The wingspan is 26–30 mm. Adults are on wing from May to June and again from August to September.
The larvae feed on various low-growing plants,[2] including tobacco. The species overwinters as full-grown larvae in the soil. They are gregarious in the first instars. Later instars make galleries in the stalks and holes in the leaves. Pupation takes place below the ground near the host plant.[3]