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Photo#1106153
Geometrid - Xanthotype

Geometrid - Xanthotype
West Farm, Turtle Lake, Barron County, Wisconsin, USA
July 12, 2015

Xanthotype species hard to ID
Canadian scientists in 2011 found that genetically, X. urticaria and X. sospeta were IDENTICAL. And other experts say you just can't ID these without inspecting their genitalia (the moth's, of course.)
http://bugguide.net/node/view/252

So I wouldn't try too hard to pin these specimens to a species. Might not be possible.

Moved
Moved from Geometrid Moths. Thanks, Ann. This one showed up late.

 
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John, there are two species which have Wisconsin in their range on MPG, the most common is X. urtocaria. On the information page of X. urtocaroai says that it is heavily patterned, so I think yours is that species. In the photos on MPG, however, there are plain ones like mine shown under both X. sospeta and X. urtocaria. They are all so similar that I cannot begin to place to species.

 
Thanks, Ann. If I understand correctly, you would move my image to species level, specifically X. urticaria. My concern with placing this moth at species level at this time is that, based on MPG photos, both X. urticaria (6740) and X. attenuaria (6743) can look like my moth, and although X. attenuaria's MPG range map doesn't include a Wisconsin sighting, it does include signtings close to Wisconsin in Minnesota and Iowa, as well as the eastern U.S. Also, MPG has no photos of Hodges 6741 or 6742, and I don't know what those two species look like or what their ranges are. Maybe they, too, are candidates.

 
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No, I did not mean to move to species level, just giving my opinion. Sorry for the confusion.

 
Thanks, and no problem. Also, on further reflection, the absence of photos of 6741 and 6742 on MPG may be an indication that those species are less common than X. urticaria and X. attenuaria, which, all else considered equal, would make the latter two species better candidates for my moth.

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John, this is but a different species from mine I think. I did not see this one.

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