Baptria tibiale (Esper, 1791)

Host plants:
The larvae feed on Actaea spicata.

Habitat:
Baptria tibiale inhabits more humid and cool habitats, in central Europe usually in mountain ranges like the Alps. It is most often found in woodland clearings, open mountain forests, river gorges, rocky woodland and similar places. It is important that there is enough larval habitat on shady or semishady places and that these are interspersed with imaginal habitat (more sunny spots like high forbs or waysides).

Life cycle:
The moths fly in one generation between early June and July. the adults are recorded more singly at open, sunny spots only during daytime. The seem to be very shy. Oviposition occurs singly on the lower margin of the leaves. The larvae live between June and August, only on the upper surface of the leaves when older and are often accompanied by other Actaea geometrids. Baptria tibiale is most easily recorded as egg, but also larva. The pupa hibernates.

Endangerment factors:
Baptria tibiale is heavily endangered by the darkening of the woodlands (overgrowth, dense afforestation, abandonment of traditional management forms like grazing or coppice). The crucial factor is the decrease of the imaginal habitat in direct contact to larval habitat (like in Parnassius mnemosyne). Global warming should have negative influence, too.

Remarks:
Baptria tibiale occurs from N-Spain (Pyrenees) across parts of central and northern Europe (in SE-Europe sporadically in moutains up to Bulgaria) and more northern parts of Asia to Japan. In Germany Baptria tibiale is low-density but widespread in the Alps (up to 1200-1400m), but extremely rare outside (today only in Thuringia - Werra valley).

Literature:
Erlacher (2014): Der Trauerspanner Baptria tibiale (Esper, 1804) – ein Juwel in der Mitte Deutschlands (Lepidoptera: Geometridae).- Entomologische Zeitschrift Stuttgart 124 (3): 139-147.