Size
wingspan about 23 mm, based on specimen by Jeff Miller at USGS
Identification
Adult: forewing light gray with black spot near middle of AM line and black basal strip along costa; PM and subterminal lines jagged, indistinct; darker gray shading beyond subterminal line; hindwing dirty white with light gray shading along veins
Larva: yellowish with tufts of black hair on each abdominal segment, and only three pairs of mid-abdominal prolegs
Range
Northwest Territories and British Columbia, south to California
Food
larvae feed on leaves of alder (
Alnus spp.) and
CeanothusLife Cycle
pupates in a small cocoon on the side of a twig
See Also
Confused Meganola (
Meganola minuscula) forewing lacks black basal markings and has curving black PM line; occurs in dry forests in the Pacific West; larvae feed on oak (
Quercus spp.)
(
compare images of both species at CBIF)
Internet References
live adult and larva images plus description, larval foodplant, biology (Jeremy Tatum, Butterflies and Moths of Southern Vancouver Island)
pinned adult image plus description, habitat, larval foodplant, distribution, flight season, similar species (Jeff Miller, Macromoths of Northwest Forests and Woodlands, USGS)
presence in California; list (U. of California at Berkeley)
distribution in Canada in BC and NT only (CBIF)
Contributed by
Robin McLeod on 21 April, 2006 - 9:07pm
Additional contributions by
Ethan KistlerLast updated 13 June, 2007 - 8:20pm
