Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
 

Register · Log In
HomeGuideID RequestRecentFrassForumsDonateHelp
Clickable Guide
Moths Butterflies Flies Caterpillars Flies Dragonflies Flies Mantids Cockroaches Bees and Wasps Walkingsticks Earwigs Ants Termites Hoppers and Kin Hoppers and Kin Beetles True Bugs Fleas Grasshoppers and Kin Ticks Spiders Scorpions Centipedes Millipedes

Calendar
Upcoming Events

Photos of insects and people from the 2024 BugGuide gathering in Idaho July 24-27

Moth submissions from National Moth Week 2024

Photos of insects and people from the 2022 BugGuide gathering in New Mexico, July 20-24

Photos of insects and people from the Spring 2021 gathering in Louisiana, April 28-May 2

Photos of insects and people from the 2019 gathering in Louisiana, July 25-27

Photos of insects and people from the 2018 gathering in Virginia, July 27-29


Previous events
TaxonomyBrowse
Info
ImagesLinksBooksData
Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Butterflies and Moths (Lepidoptera) » Owlet Moths and kin (Noctuoidea) » Owlet Moths (Noctuidae) » Cutworm or Dart Moths (Noctuinae) » Hadenini » Spiramater » Otter Spiramater - Hodges#10301 (Spiramater lutra)

Species Spiramater lutra - Otter Spiramater - Hodges#10301

Classification · Hodges Number · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Size · Identification · Range · Season · Food · Remarks · See Also · Internet References
Otter Spiramater - Spiramater lutra Yellow-headed cutworm - Spiramater lutra - female Spiramater lutra - Spiramater lutra Spiramater lutra Spiramater lutra Spiramater lutra Spiramater lutra Pennsylvania Caterpillar - Spiramater lutra
Show images of: caterpillars · adults · both
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
Superfamily Noctuoidea (Owlet Moths and kin)
Family Noctuidae (Owlet Moths)
Subfamily Noctuinae (Cutworm or Dart Moths)
Tribe Hadenini
Genus Spiramater
Species lutra (Otter Spiramater - Hodges#10301)
Hodges Number
10301
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
formerly Lacanobia lutra
Explanation of Names
LUTRA: Lutra is the otter genus, giving rise to the common name Otter Spiramater; perhaps the describer of the species [Guenee in 1852] thought the coloration in some way resembled that of otter fur? (comment by Bob Patterson)
Size
wingspan about 40 mm
Identification
Adult: forewing dark brown or blackish with pale (often pinkish) reniform spot, anal patch, and basal patch

Larva: early instars green, later instars brown with a line of black dots down the back
Range
British Columbia to Newfoundland, south in the east at least to Maryland, south in the west to Arizona
Season
adults fly from May to July
Food
larvae feed on alder, arbutus, birch, buffalo-berry (Shepherdia canadensis), choke cherry, fir, gooseberry, hazel, hemlock, pine, poplar, spruce, tamarack, willow
Remarks
The genus Spiramater is misspelled "Spirameter" at a number of web sites.
See Also
Spiramater grandis (Grand Arches) has a light gray subterminal area, lacks pinkish markings, and has a conspicuous W shape half-way along the terminal line on the forewing. Compare images of both species.
Internet References
Moth Photographers Group (MPG)
Pacific Northwest Moths
Barcode of Life (BOLD)
live larvae and adult images plus larval description and food plants (Jeremy Tatum, Butterflies and Moths of Southern Vancouver Island)
pinned adult image (John Glaser, Maryland)
pinned adult image (Bruce Walsh, Moths of Southeastern Arizona)
pinned adult image (A.W. Thomas, Canadian Forest Service)
larval food plants and adult flight season (Ohio State U.)
Contributed by Robin McLeod on 2 September, 2005 - 7:44pm
Additional contributions by Steve Nanz, marcie oconnor, Steve Morris
Last updated 15 December, 2023 - 9:22pm

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2025 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by:

Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology at Iowa State University logo

Printer Friendly Version 		Terms of Use
Privacy Statement
Site Map
Contact