Purple Clay

Diarsia brunnea

This record describes Diarsia brunnea (species). Recorded family: Noctuidae. Recorded order: Lepidoptera.

Identification and Appearance

Wingspan 35 to 38 mm. A fairly distinctive species with a broad, brownish forewing, often with a purple tinge, and a blackish patch between the two forewing stigmata. The larval foodplants are a wide range of herbaceous plants and shrubs. Quite common throughout most of Britain. In a recent survey to determine the status of all macro moths in Britain this species was classified as common.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Noctuidae
Genus: Diarsia

Imported taxonomy record. Source availability varies; see the source references and editorial policy below.

Habitat and Range

Habitat

This is a woodland species.

Seasonal Activity

Main flight period is June and July.

Diet and Behavior

Life History

The larval foodplants are a wide range of herbaceous plants and shrubs.

Additional species information

Recorded status

Quite common throughout most of Britain. In a recent survey to determine the status of all macro moths in Britain this species was classified as common.

About Butterflies and Moths: the wider group

Order-level background for Lepidoptera, the group containing Diarsia brunnea. Species-specific details appear above.

Group overview

Lepidoptera includes approximately 180,000 described species of butterflies and moths. Moths outnumber butterflies roughly 10:1. The monarch butterfly's eastern population has declined by more than 80% since the mid-1990s, and the western population by over 95% since the 1980s. The IUCN lists the migratory monarch as Vulnerable.

Ecological role of the group

Butterflies and moths are essential indicators of ecosystem health. As caterpillars, they are a primary food source for birds - a single nest of blue tit chicks requires ~10,000 caterpillars. Adult moths pollinate many night-blooming plants.

Economic and practical significance of the group

Lepidoptera are critical pollinators. In Europe, grassland butterfly species have declined by almost 50% since the early 1990s. In the UK, three-quarters of butterflies are in decline. In the U.S., five butterfly species have gone extinct since 1950, with 29 listed as endangered.

Recorded sources for this group: IUCN Red List, Xerces Society, USFWS, PNAS, WWF. Imported estimates may describe particular regions or reporting periods.

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