Species Acronicta hasta - Speared Dagger Moth - Hodges#9229

9229

Cherry Dagger Moth

Acronicta furcifera Guenee 1852

* phylogenetic sequence #931445

HASTA: from the Latin "hasta" (a spear) - the origin of the common name, Speared Dagger, presumably referring to the shape of the streaks on the forewing

wingspan 34-45 mm

Adult: forewing dark gray with 4 heavy black streaks - basal, anal, between orbicular and reniform spot, and at outer wing edge below reniform spot (basal steak is especially long and broad, sometimes extending more than half length of wing); orbicular and reniform spots usually faint/inconspicuous; contrast between ground color of wing and streaks not as great as in similar species, mentioned in "See also" section below

Larva: middle instars bright green with broad yellow and red dorsal stripe; head with red band over vertex forking to either side of triangle, commonly with triangle and cheeks greenish; last instar charcoal black with stunning red dorsal line; head black, sometimes reddish at top; both forms sparsely set with soft hairlike setae

[description adapted from Caterpillars of Eastern Forests]

eastern United States, New Brunswick, Ontario, and British Columbia

adults fly from April/May to September

larvae June to October

larvae feed on cherry, oak, and plum

two or more generations per year in the south; one or two in the north

Life cycle images:

1.4th instar larva 2.late instar larva 4.adult

Forked Dagger (A. furcifera) and Lobelia Dagger (A. lobeliae) also have 4 prominent streaks on forewing, but they both show more contrast between the streaks and the wing's ground color, plus the former is lighter gray with a more prominent orbicular spot, and the latter has an overall brownish-yellow color rather than gray.

Update: Acronicta hasta now includes as a synonym Acronicta furcifera.

Moth Photographers Group - range map, photos of living and pinned adults.

BOLD - Barcode of Life Data Systems - species account with photographs of pinned adults and collection map.

adult images (Larry Line, Maryland)

Pacific Northwest Moths

iNaturalist

University of Alberta E.H. Strickland Entomological Museum