Panemeria tenebrata

• Subfamily: Metoponiinae
• Wingspan: 18-22 mm
• Flight period: Apr - Jun
• Spread: Common
• Host plants: Caryophyllaceae, Labiateae

Information

The Panemeria tenebrata also called Small Yellow Underwing is a moth of the Noctuidae family, subfamily Metoponiinae, with wingspan of 18-22 mm.
Widespread in most of Europe with the exception of Portugal, Norway and Northern European Russia. *
In the east, it extends to the mountains of the Urals, but the distribution limits in the east are not yet sufficiently studied.
In Italy it is present in Sicily and not in Sardinia. *

The base color of the front wings of Panemeria tenebrata brown, with various shades of brown and pale red, with splashes in the grayscale. Inner and outer lines indistinctly darker. A darker "toothed" shading is visible in the middle band. Another darker shade precedes and defines the subterminal hue.

Hind wings dark brown, almost black with an evident elongated spot of golden yellow.
Head, thorax and abdomen are in the basic color of the front wings. **

They fly from April to June in a single generation
The Panemeria tenebrata goes easily unnoticed, feeding in the hottest hours of the day. It is found from mesophilic meadows to low altitude flowering mesohygrophilous to warmer open and dry areas at medium altitude. ***

The larva is light green / greyish, with a deep green dorsal line; Whitish subdorsal lines, bordered with dark; More yellowish spiracular line, edged in dark green above; pale green head. **
Pupae are squat ocher / greenish in color

The larvae feed on the flowers and seeds of Cerastium sp. and Stellaria (Caryophyllaceae) and Lamium sp. (Labiateae).


* Lepidoptera mundi https://lepidoptera.eu/ - Fauna Europea https://fauna-eu.org/
** Bestimmungshilfe für die in Europa nachgewiesenen Schmetterlingsarten - http://lepiforum.de/
*** Roland Robineau, Guide de papillons nocturne de France, Delachaux et Niestlé, 2011 p. 120