Host plants:
The larvae are polyphagous and feed on ground-near plant parts.
Habitat:
Agrotis vestigialis inhabits coastal and inland dunes, sandy grasslands, open pine woodland and sometimes fields on sandy soil.
Life cycle:
The young larva hibernates. I found them in coastal dunes of Zeeland (S-Netherlands) in March 2014. The larvae rest superficially buried in the sand during daytime. The moths occur between July and September with peak in August.
Endangerment factors:
On inland borders of coastal dunes, Agrotis vestigialis is sometimes endangered by agriculture and overbuiding, in the dunes themselves largely by mass tourism. Inland dunes in some distance from coasts are one of Europe`s most threatened type of habitat. In the Upper Rhine Valley in Baden-Württemberg (SW-Germany), for example, inland dunes have been almost totally destroyed except for minute remnants due to agriculture, overbuilding and afforestation.
Remarks:
Agrotis vestigialis occurs from Spain across Europe (except most of S-Europe) to the Asian Amur region.