Genus Baileya

Baileya Grote, 1895

An eponym, perhaps for James Spencer Bailey (1830-1883) or James Harold Bailey (1870-1909) (1). Internet searches show the former was a New York physician--perhaps a connection with Grote, a long-time resident of New York.

7 species in North America: 5 listed by Nearctica (2), and 2 additional species form southeastern US described in 2004 by Vernon Brou (see PDF doc).

wingspan 21-34 mm

Adult: forewing shiny, gray, with (usually) silvery or whitish shading in median area; black markings along ST line, especially at costa; base of wing usually contains whitish or pale color, bordered distally by oblique basal line; hindwing light gray or brown, darker toward outer margin

Nova Scotia to Florida, west to Texas, north to Alberta

deciduous woods, shrubby areas; adults are nocturnal and come to light

adults fly from March to November in the south; May to October farther north

larvae feed on leaves of a small number of species of deciduous trees

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

The two recently-described species in 2004 are named Baileya acadiana and Baileya ellessyoo; the former occurs in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, and the latter has been recorded in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, and Texas.

Brou, Vernon Antoine. 2004. Two new species of Baileya Grote (Nolidae: Risobinae) from the southeastern United States. Journal of the Lepidopterists Society. 58(2): 94-99.

[available online in PDF format here]

pinned adult images of 5 species (CBIF)

Insects of Cedar Creek image of Baileya doubledayi from Minnesota

photos of all 7 species and key to species; PDF doc plus description and distribution of the 2 species described in 2004 (Vernon Brou, courtesy Yale U.)