About Asthena albulata (Hufnagel, 1767)
Asthena albulata, commonly known as the small white wave, is a moth species belonging to the family Geometridae. This species is found across all of Europe, and also occurs in the Near East. The wingspan of adult Asthena albulata ranges from 14 to 18 mm. The base color of its wings is white, with a silky appearance. Both the forewings and hindwings have fine brown cross-lines, and a row of black dots runs along the margin of both pairs of wings. Asthena amurensis Stgr., a related species from the Eastern Palearctic, is smaller than A. albulata, has clear discal dots, and lacks the black dots along the distal wing margin that are present in A. albulata. The larva of A. albulata is slender and pale, marked with large red spots, and has fairly long, dark bristles (setae). A. albulata produces two generations each year, and adult moths are active in flight from mid-April to August. The larvae feed on Corylus avellana, Betula species, and occasionally Carpinus betulus. Larvae can be found between May and September, and the species overwinters in the pupal stage.
