Species Apamea cogitata - Thoughtful Apamea - Hodges#9367.1

9367.1

The above common name proposal is based on the meaning of the species epithet, and provides a similarly-named "partner" for the Doubtful Apamea (Apamea dubitans), formerly considered conspecific with this one. There is already a moth named The Thinker (Lacinipolia meditata).

formerly considered a subspecies of Apamea dubitans (i.e. A. dubitans cogitata)

formerly placed in genus Agroperina

COGITATA: from the Latin "cogitare" (to think)

I don't know the significance of this name.

forewing reddish-brown, darker in subterminal area; reniform spot pale yellow or whitish with dark line running through it; orbicular spot oval, diagonal, with faint whitish outline; subterminal line thin, pale, jagged, indistinct; series of whitish dots along costa and outer margin

hindwing grayish, darker toward margins, with blackish veins and terminal line; fringe brownish-yellow

Newfoundland to British Columbia and Northwest Territories, plus adjacent parts of United States, south in the west to California

adults fly from June to August or early September

larvae may feed on grasses? (McGill U.)

one generation per year

Although this species has an extensive distribution, no live images could be found on the Internet as of October 2005.

Doubtful Apamea (Apamea dubitans) is similar but its forewing is dark chocolate brown with no hint of red (compare images of both species)

pinned adult image (CBIF)

pinned adult image listed as Agroperina dubitans cogitata, plus other info (California Dept. Agriculture and Food)

larval food plants - PDF doc plus life cycle and flight season (Macrolepidoptera of Mont Saint-Hilaire Region, McGill U.)

presence in California; list (U. of California at Berkeley)

synonym - listing under Agroperina dubitans cogitata (FUNET)