About the Antler Moth
Cerapteryx graminis, the antler moth, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is a common species throughout most of Europe but is lacking in the very dry southern regions. The northernmost occurrence is Iceland, and above the Arctic Circle. It also occurs in Siberia and in North Mongolia. The species has been introduced to North America. In the Alps it rises to an altitude of 2100 meters.
This species is unusual for a noctuid in that there is marked sexual dimorphism. The male has a wingspan of 27–32 mm but the female is larger with a wingspan of 35–39 mm. The forewings are brown, speckled with black and marked with a bold white branched basal streak which gives the species its common name. The hindwings are dark brown with a white fringe.
Larvae feed on a variety of grasses. Forewing olive grey or olive rufous, or olive fuscous; median and marginal areas sometimes deeper coloured, otherwise the 3 lines are undefined; stigmata pale, especially the reniform, which at base is white, emitting a ray basewards along the median vein, and two externally along veins 3 and 4; claviform elongate; orbicular flattened; hindwing dark fuscous... Wikipedia →