''Hypomecis punctinalis'', the pale oak beauty, is a

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

of the family

Geometridae The geometer moths are moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyleti ...

. The species was first described by

Giovanni Antonio Scopoli Giovanni Antonio Scopoli (sometimes Latinisation of names, Latinized as Johannes Antonius Scopolius) (3 June 1723 – 8 May 1788) was an Italians, Italian physician and natural history, naturalist. His biographer Otto Guglia named him the "first ...

in his 1763 ''

Entomologia Carniolica ' is a Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic work by Giovanni Antonio Scopoli, published in Vienna in 1763. As well as describing hundreds of new species, ' contained observations on the species' biology, including the first published account of queen bee ...

''. The species can be found in central and southern Europe,

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

Transcaucasia The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and West Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Armenia, ...

, Russia, the

Russian Far East The Russian Far East ( rus, Дальний Восток России, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in North Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asia, Asian continent, and is coextensive with the Far Easte ...

, Japan, Korea,

Ussuri The Ussuri ( ; ) or Wusuli ( ) is a river that runs through Khabarovsk and Primorsky Krais, Russia and the southeast region of Northeast China in the province of Heilongjiang. It rises in the Sikhote-Alin mountain range, flowing north and formi ...

and western China. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

is 46–55 mm. The length of the forewings is 22–26 mm. The forewings have a grey-white ground colour with a brownish tinge and are fine blackish dusted. The outer margin of the forewing has a convexity. The forewings have conspicuous transverse lines and a clear discal mark. The discal mark is pale centred and dark ringed. The forewings of the male have a fovea. The hindwings are similarly marked. The hindwing median and second lines are conspicuously dark and wavy. Bernd Müller, Sven Erlacher, Axel Hausmann, Pasi Sihvonen, and Peder Skou , 2019 In: Axel Hausmann (Hrsg.):, 2015 ''The Geometrid Moths of Europe''. 1. Auflage. Volume 6: Ennominae II.(Boarmiini, Gnophini, additions to previous volumes) Apollo Books, Stenstrup 2019, :ISBN 978-90-04-38748-5 The moths fly in one generation from the end of April to July. The larvae feed on various trees including

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

and

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

. Similar species: *''

Hypomecis roboraria ''Hypomecis roboraria'', the great oak beauty, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species occurs in the Palearctic. The nominate subspecies is found in Europe. The subspecies ''isabellaria'' is found in western Central Asia east across Sibe ...

'' (''H.roboraria'' has a pale spot on a dark background at the apex forewing underside which is not present in ''H. punctinalis'' *'' Hypomecis'' species

References

Notes

#''The flight season refers to the

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and

the Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. This may vary in other parts of the range.''

External links

Pale oak beauty on ''UKMoths''''Lepiforum e.V.''''Vlindernet.nl''
Boarmiini Moths described in 1763 Moths of Asia Moths of Europe Taxa named by Giovanni Antonio Scopoli {{Boarmiini-stub