Hadena laudeti (Boisduval, 1840)

Host plants:
The species developes on Silene otites and other closely related species such as Silene Silene exaltata or Silene gigantea (the latter for example in Samos).

Habitat:
Hadena laudeti inhabits steppe-like slopes and rocky grasslands in lower and medium-high elevations (up to 1700m above sea level).

Life cycle:
Hadena laudeti flies in a single or more often in two generations per year with adults from late April to August. The main flight period is likely between early May and mid- or late June, depending on the location.
I obtained young larvae around the 20 May 2007 in the Italian Valle di Susa together with those of Hadena irregularis. In mid-July 2007, I observed a mature but parasitized larva on Silene otites in Northern Greece and in 2009 many other caterpillars there. In Valais, a caterpillar was found in a small sample of Silene otites in early July 2008. In Samos, I found numerous young caterpillars and moths resting at the host plant (Silene gigantea) during the day in early May 2009 (risk of confusion with the closely related Enterpia roseocandida). The pupa overwinters.

Endangerment factors:
Hadena laudeti has high biotope requirements and occurs together with its host plant only in intact biotopes. However, these are more and more destroyed (e.g. through expanding vineyards) or become overgrown gradually after abandonment of extensive grazing.

Remarks:
Hadena laudeti occurs in Southern Europe and parts of temperate Asia (e.g. in the steppe belt) and extends north to the Valais, where it is severely threatened by the viticulture and other factors. In the south (e.g. in Greece), Hadena laudeti is still more common.

Hadena laudeti is nowadays often listed in the genus Enterpia (Enterpia laudeti) because of some differences to the Hadena species.