Gold swift

Gold swift
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Hepialidae
Genus:	Phymatopus
Species:	P. hecta
Binomial name
Phymatopus hecta (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms
Noctua hecta Linnaeus, 1758 Bombyx flina [Denis and Schiffermuller], 1775 Phalaena clavipes Retzius, 1783 Noctua nemorosa Esper, 1786 Hepialus hectator Haworth, 1802 Hepialus unicolor Petersen, 1902 Hepialus decorata Krulikowsky, 1908 Hepialus decorata Rebel, 1910 Hepialus strigosa Hartwieg, 1922 Hepialus nigra Lempke, 1938 Hepialus confluens BytinskiSalz, 1939 Hepialus inversa Bytinski-Salz, 1939 Hepialus ornata Bytinski-Salz, 1939 Hepialus zetterstedti Burrau, 1950 Hepialus radiata Lucas, 1959 Hepialus continua van Wisselingh, 1961 Phimatopus brunnea Lempke, 1961 Phimatopus fusca Lempke, 1961 Phimatopus reducta Lempke, 1961 Phimatopus rufa Lempke, 1961

The gold swift (Phymatopus hecta) is a species of moth belonging to the family Hepialidae. Until recently it was placed in the genus Hepialus. It is a widespread species of Europe, its distribution following that of its foodplant, bracken.

Mounted

This is a rather small moth for the family, with a wingspan of 26–32 mm. The male is distinctive, the brown forewings marked with two parallel bands of gold markings. The larger female is less striking with muted grey and brown markings. The adult is on the wing in June and July and both sexes are moderately attracted to light. To attract females, the male emits a scent rather similar to pineapple.

The larva feeds internally on the stems and roots of bracken, taking two years to reach full size, when it emerges to pupate in the ground.

1. ^ The flight season refers to the British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range.

References

• Skinner, Bernard Colour Identification Guide to Moths of the British Isles 1984
• Waring, Paul & Townsend, Martin Field Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland 2003