Dysgonia algira

Dysgonia algira, the passenger, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1767 and is found in the Palearctic - from the southern half of Europe and parts of North Africa through West, Central and South Asia.

Dysgonia algira
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Superfamily:	Noctuoidea
Family:	Erebidae
Genus:	Dysgonia
Species:	D. algira
Binomial name
Dysgonia algira (Linnaeus, 1767)
Synonyms
List Phalaena algira Linnaeus, 1767 Noctua triangularis Hübner, [1803] Ophiusa albivitta Guenée, 1852 Ophiusa festina Walker, 1858 Ophiusa olympia Swinhoe, 1885 Grammodes algira var. europa Schawerda, 1912 Grammodes algira f. defecta Stauder, 1923 Parallelia algira sinica Bryk, 1949 Dysgonia achatina Sulzer, 1776 Dysgonia defecta (Stauder, 1923)

Technical description and variation

For a key to the terms used, see Glossary of entomology terms.

O. algira L. (= achatina Sulz., triangularis Hbn) Forewing brownish fuscous, with a purplish tinge when fresh; a whitish median band narrowed in middle, edged inwardly by the erect but slightly outcurved inner line, outwardly by the similarly incurved median line: outer line acutely angled outwards on vein 6 and bluntly bent between veins 3 and 4. then sinuous to inner margin near median line; a black apical streak of two spots; the terminal area violet grey: hindwing fuscous, with a diffuse whitish median band: the terminal area grey at middle: fringe grey, below apex whitish; the ab. mandschuriana Stgr.[ now full species Dysgonia mandschuriana (Staudinger, 1892) ] is more uniformly purplish or slaty grey, with the median band only slightly paler, not white. Larva yellowish grey, darker on dorsum, with tine black longitudinal lines; venter and feet pale grey; spiracles black; head yellowish grey.^[1] The wingspan is 40–46 mm.

Biology

The moth flies from May to August depending on the location. The larvae feed on Rubus and willow.