Mniotype occidentalis Yela, Fibiger, Ronkay & Zilli, 2010

Host plants:
The larvae are polyphagous on herbs. I recorded them on Sonchus and Lotus near Almeria.

Habitat:
Mniotype occidentalis inhabits dry and hot, often semi-desert-like areas mostly below 800m. The larva is often found in such semi-arid landscapes in gorges or along river beds where some eatable plants grow.

Life cycle:
The adults occur when environmental conditions allow a subsequent larval development. Thus adults are most common in autumn and spring because fresh green is usually available after the first autumn rains. In 2022 these rain falls missed almost completely and I recorded larvae only in deep barrancos and along the Rio Andarax in mid-November 2022.

Remarks:
Mniotype occidentalis occurs in Europe in the Iberian Peninsula and reaches southern France in the region northeast of the Pyrenees. Earlier Mniotype occidentalis has been included in Mniotype spinosa which occurs in the more central part of the Mediterranean, e.g. in Corsica and Sardinia.