About Gortyna flavago (Denis & Schiffermüller), 1775
This species, Gortyna flavago (Denis & Schiffermüller), 1775, has a wingspan ranging from 3 to 4.3 cm. Its forewings are yellow, heavily dusted with bright ferruginous color. The areas between the subbasal and inner lines, and between the outer and submarginal lines, are filled with dull liver brown. Lines and veins are finely colored red brown. All three stigmata are pale yellow, with darker centers and brown outlines; the reniform stigma contains an outlined lunule. The submarginal line is yellowish, and ends in a yellow apical blotch. Hindwings are dirty luteous, or muddy yellow, with grey veins, cellspot, outer line, and submarginal cloud. The aberrations of this species include ab. suffusa ab. nov. [Warren], in which the entire forewing is suffused with ferruginous. The cinarea Goosens form from Algeria is pale yellow or reddish grey, with a dark patch between the almost obsolete stigmata. Its terminal area matches the ground color, or is violet brown, and lacks any pale apical patch. Its hindwing is whitish grey with no markings. Similar Gortyna species found in the same distribution area have longer, more elongated forewings, and are usually considerably larger overall. Genital morphological examination is recommended for reliable species determination. The very similar eastern Palearctic species Gortyna fortis and Gortyna basalipuncta have no geographical overlap with Gortyna flavago.
