73.357 Xestia xanthographa (Square-spot Rustic)
fw: 14-17mm (Waring & Townsend), ws: 36-38mm (MBGBI9); Jul-Oct; mainly grasses (Poaceae); common throughout GB
Xestia xanthographa (Square-spot Rustic) §20
ID: Ground colour ranges from pale brown through reddish-brown and greyish-brown to blackish-brown. Generally recognisable from the squarish pale or pale-outlined kidney mark; other markings are indistinct although the oval is usually also pale or pale-outlined; ground colour often a shade darker between the stigmata; crosslines variable in strength, postmedian line may be strongly dentate with a row of neural dots distally at the apices of the 'teeth'; pale subterminal line may have a darker proximal border; hindwing whitish without or with very faint discal spot and terminal border suffused fuscous to a variable extent, this suffusion being particularly extensive in northern females.
In my experience, specimens with a rich reddish ground colour often have a very prominent pale kidney mark, a prominently pale-outlined oval and a small pale subbasal spot - I have not seen the latter spot in specimens with other ground colours.
Specimens with a pinkish hue may resemble Diarsia rubi (Small Squre-spot) but this has a much smoother postmedian line and a small black spot dorsal to the oval mark. Euxoa nigricans (Garden Dart) may be similar but it has a prominent dart mark (claviform stigma)
In my experience, specimens with a rich reddish ground colour often have a very prominent pale kidney mark, a prominently pale-outlined oval and a small pale subbasal spot - I have not seen the latter spot in specimens with other ground colours.
Specimens with a pinkish hue may resemble Diarsia rubi (Small Squre-spot) but this has a much smoother postmedian line and a small black spot dorsal to the oval mark. Euxoa nigricans (Garden Dart) may be similar but it has a prominent dart mark (claviform stigma)
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§1 Foulness, Essex; 11/08/2007; fw 15.4mm
§2 Foulness, Essex; 11/08/2007; fw 14.7mm §3 Rannoch, Perthshire; 24/08/2008 §4 Rannoch, Perthshire; 24/08/2008 §5 Foulness, Essex; 04/07/2009; male; fw 14.3mm §6 Foulness, Essex; 15/08/2009; fw 15.0mm §7 Foulness, Essex; 15/08/2009; fw 15.4mm §8 Leigh-on-sea, Essex; 24/08/2009; fw 16.7mm §9 Foulness, Essex; 27/08/2011; female §10 St Marys. Isles of Scilly; 28/09/2011; female §11 Strumpshaw Fen, Norfolk; 22/08/2012; male; fw 15.3mm §12 Skye; 04/08/2013 §13 Foulness, Essex; 16/08/2014 §14 Foulness, Essex; 16/08/2014 All images © Chris Lewis |
§15 Compton Bishop, Somerset; 26/08/2014; male
§16 Compton Bishop, Somerset; 27/08/2014; male; fw 17.1mm §17 Compton Bishop, Somerset; 27/08/2014; male §18 Foulness, Essex; 30/08/2014 §19 Kintail, Ross-shire; 06/09/2014; female; fw 16.2mm §20 Westcliff-on-sea, Essex; 09/08/2015 §21 St Marys, Isles of Scilly; 01/10/2016; male; fw 14.1mm §22 St Marys, Isles of Scilly; 06/10/2019; male; fw 14.3mm §23 St Marys, Isles of Scilly; 06/10/2019; male; fw 16.0mm §24 Foulness, Essex; 15/08/2020; male; fw 13.7mm §25 Foulness, Essex; 14/08/2021; female; fw 14.2mm §26 St Marys, Isles of Scilly; 09/10/2021; male; fw 15.8mm §27 St Marys, Isles of Scilly; 13/10/2021 §28 St Marys, Isles of Scilly; 20/10/2022 §L1 Foulness, Essex; 28/03/2009 |
Page published 17/03/2017 (§1-20 & §L1) | §21 added 24/06/2017 | §22&23 added 18/12/2019 | §24 added 28/08/2020 |
§25 added 13/12/2021 | §26-27 added 07/01/2022 | §28 added 30/11/2022
§25 added 13/12/2021 | §26-27 added 07/01/2022 | §28 added 30/11/2022
