Catocala conversa (Esper, 1783)

Host plants:
The caterpillars live on Quercus species, particularly Quercus ilex (holm oak).

Habitat:
Catocala conversa inhabits warm oak forests. In Sardinia, I found caterpillars in a holm oak forest at 1000m above sea level in the Montiferru region in the second half of May 2012.

Life cycle:
The egg overwinters. The caterpillars live from April to June. They apparently prefer bushy, well sunlit oaks and occur in an almost black and a significantly lighter form. The moths fly from June to August.

Remarks:
Catocala conversa occurs from North Africa across Southern Europe (local north to Central France) and Asia Minor into Central Asia.