Species Thallophaga taylorata - Hodges#6808

6808

one of three species in this genus in North America listed at All-Leps

wingspan 31-34 mm, based on photos of Internet specimens

Adult: forewing light to medium brown or grayish-brown with dark speckling, pale veins, straight dark median line that fades before reaching costa, and pointed apex with slightly falcate outer margin; PM line with black dots at veins; slightly darker shading beyond PM line, blending into short apical dash

Larva: body orange, brown, and tan with faint white subdorsal longitudinal lines; midabdominal intersegmental areas orange brown

[description by Jeff Miller]

California to British Columbia

wet western coniferous forests

adults fly in early spring

larvae in May and June

larvae feed on fronds of ferns, particularly Western Swordfern (Polystichum munitum)

overwinters as a pupa buried in soil; adults emerge in early spring; larvae present in May and June; one generation per year

Thallophaga hyperborea forewing has a slightly wavy median line that reaches the costa, its outer margin is not falcate near the apex, and its hindwing lacks a dark median line (compare images of both species at CBIF)

pinned adult images of two specimens (CBIF)

pinned adult image plus description, habitat, flight season, foodplant (Jeff Miller, Macromoths of Northwest Forests and Woodlands, USGS)

live larva image plus description, foodplant, seasonality (Jeffrey Miller, Caterpillars of Pacific Northwest Forests and Woodlands, USGS)

presence in California; list (U. of California at Berkeley)