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Acontia nitidula, the Brixton beauty, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1787.[1] It is found in South Africa, Europe, China, Japan and throughout India and Sri Lanka. It has also been recorded from Great Britain, but this record is doubtful.

Acontia nitidula
Illustration from John Curtis's British Entomology Volume 5
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Superfamily:	Noctuoidea
Family:	Noctuidae
Genus:	Acontia
Species:	A. nitidula
Binomial name
Acontia nitidula (Fabricius, 1787)
Synonyms
Bombyx nitidula Fabricius, 1787 Phalaena catena Sowerby, 1805 Desmophora elegans Stephens, 1829 (replacement name for Phalaena catena Sowerby, 1805)

The larvae feed on the leaves of Abelmoschus esculentus and cotton and are considered a minor pest.

Occurrence in the British Isles

The occurrence of Acontia nitidula in the British Isles is unconfirmed and highly doubtful. It was included on the British checklist of Lepidoptera species on the basis of a single specimen taken by Mr Plastead, a notorious dealer in rarities, at Brixton in September 1829. It is thought to be deliberately imported and there is no evidence of breeding in the United Kingdom.[2]

References

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