Noctuidae

73.107 Old Lady Mormo maura (Linnaeus, 1758)

Local

Similar species: This moth is unlikely to be mistaken for any other British or Irish species.

Forewing: 30 to 36mm

Habitats: Deciduous open woodland, scrub, hedgerows, marshes and gardens.

Habits: The moth comes easily to sugar. It comes sparingly to light and often avoids entering the trap.

Foodplant: The larva feeds nocturnally in the autumn on chickweeds, Water Dock, other docks and other herbaceous plants. In the spring it feeds on Ivy, Hawthorn, Blackthorn, sallows, elms, birches, Spindle and other deciduous trees and shrubs. It hides in the leaf litter during the day. It pupates in a cocoon behind bark, in crevices, in Ivy, in the leaf litter or in loose soil.

On the European mainland it has also been recorded feeding on dead-nettles, Raspberry, Strawberry, Dog-rose, Ash, maples, poplars, Alder and Viburnum spp.