Species Calophasia lunula - Toadflax Brocade - Hodges#10177

10177

Toadflax Moth

the only species in this genus in North America

wingspan 26-32 mm

larvae up to 35 mm

Adult: forewing light tan or pale brown with irregular patches of white, a white crescent along inner edge, and several black longitudinal streaks in the subterminal area; hindwing brownish-white; thorax has double crest

Mature larva: pearly-white to bluish-white background, numerous black lateral spots, five yellow stripes, and two broad broken black lines along the back

southeastern Canada and northeastern US at least to Maryland, plus northwestern US and British Columbia - range expanding in some areas

native to Europe, western Asia, and northern Africa

pastures, agricultural fields, roadsides, waste places where host plant grows

adults fly from May to August

larvae present from early summer through fall

first and second instar larvae feed on the flowers, and later instar larvae feed on the leaves of Toadflax (Linaria spp.)

adults nectar on flowers of Toadflax and other plants

adults emerge from May to August and lay 100-400 eggs singly on both leaf surfaces of host plant; eggs hatch in about 7 days, beginning in early summer; larvae feed from early summer through fall, and overwinter in pupa stage usually in/on the soil or sometimes on stem of host plant; two overlapping generations per year in Ontario, one to three generations elsewhere

Larva, adult

First released in Canada (1,500 larvae) in 1962 at Belleville, Ontario; subsequent releases in Nova Scotia; now established in ON QC NB NS, and spreading south in the US at least to Maryland.

First released in the US in 1968 near Missoula, Montana; subsequent releases in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming; now established in Idaho, Montana, Washington, plus southern British Columbia.

Larvae defoliate about 20 percent of Yellow Toadflax stems in Ontario but do not reduce plant density.

Moth Photographers Group

Pacific Northwest Moths

Cornell University - Biological Control

iNaturalist