Kingdom Animalia Class Insecta Family Geometridae Scientific name Scopula rubiginata | Phylum Arthropoda Order Lepidoptera Genus Scopula Rank Species | |
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Similar Scopula ornata, Scopula decorata, Scopula immorata, Scopula immutata, Scopula incanata | ||
Scopula rubiginata, the tawny wave, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is found from the Iberian Peninsula up to the Ural. In the North its range extends to Denmark and Southern Sweden and Finland. It is not present in most of the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula (with the exception of Gibraltar), Sicily and the southern Greek islands. In Morocco it is found in the Atlas mountains. Furthermore, it is also present in North Turkey, the Caucasus and the Crimea. Eastwards, its range stretches through southern Siberia, the northern central Asian mountains up to Mongolia.
The wingspan is 16–22 mm. The moth flies in one (June to August), two (May to June and July to September) or three (in overlapping generations from April to October) generations depending on the location.
The larva feeds on various herbaceous plants, including Thymus glabrescens, Calluna vulgaris, Artemisia campestris, Rumex acetosella, Thymus serpyllum, Medicago lupulina, Vicia, Lotus, Trifolium, Cytisus scoparius, Thalictrum, Galium, Taraxacum officinale and Convolvulus arvensis.
Subspecies
Subspecies Scopula rubiginata ochraceata is mostly treated as a species, Scopula ochraceata.