Description

Adult

Wingspan of 35-45 mm. Forewings greyish-brown to velvet-black suffused with white-grey. Wings each bear a silver y shaped mark. Hindwings pale brown with a broad brownish-black to blackish border.

Larvae

Up to 45mm long. Body green to blackish-green with pale irregular lines along the back and a white to yellow spiracular line. Three pairs of abdominal prolegs.

Eggs

Greyish-white, flattened eggs laid singly and in small groups on the leaves of hosts. .

Distribution

Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and many parts of Asia.

Economic Host(s)

A wide range of greenhouse and outdoor grown crops including cultivated flowers, beet, potato, cereals and flax

Symptoms/Signs

Larvae feed on leaves producing ragged edged holes in the leaf and on the leaf margins. The major damage is caused by later instars attacking the inner heads of crops.

Generations:

3-4