Catocala nymphagoga (Esper, 1787)

Host plants:
The larvae feed on Quercus species. I tapped them from Quercus ilex in Provence and Sardinia. In Greece, I found the caterpillars on Quercus pubescens and Q. frainetto.

Habitat:
Catocala nymphagoga colonizes holm oak bush forests, Quercus pubescens scrub and woodlands as well as other bright and warm-dry oak forests.

Life cycle:
The egg overwinters. The caterpillars live from April to June. The moths fly from July to September. The caterpillars live mainly on low branches or even coppice of older oaks.

Remarks:
The Mediterranean distribution (north Africa, Asia Minor, Southern Europe) extends north to the southern edge of the Alps (e.g. Lake Garda).