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Species Papaipema arctivorens - Northern Burdock Borer - Hodges#9471

Representative Images

Northern Burdock Borer - Papaipema arctivorens Noctuidae: Papaipema arctivorens - Papaipema arctivorens Noctuidae: Papaipema arctivorens - Papaipema arctivorens moth - Papaipema arctivorens moth - Papaipema arctivorens Papaipema arctivorens Need expert ID - dwarf Papaipema - Papaipema arctivorens - male Northern Burdock Borer - Hodges#9471 - Papaipema arctivorens
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 Apameini
Genus Papaipema (Borer Moths)
Species arctivorens (Northern Burdock Borer - Hodges#9471)

Hodges Number

9471

Numbers

common

Size

wingspan 27-39 mm

Identification

Adult: forewing light orange with rusty red shading and speckling; area beyond PM line dark purplish-brown except for yellowish apical patch and sometimes a yellow subterminal line; orbicular and claviform spots large, white; claviform spot usually split in two, with the smaller portion nearer to orbicular spot; reniform spot filled with ground color, and rimmed with 5 or 6 white spots; basal patch yellowish, contrasting against the brown of the adjacent AM band; hindwing pale brown with darker discal lunule and subterminal band

Range

Quebec to northern Georgia, west to Missouri, north to Minnesota and Ontario

Habitat

fields, waste places; adults are nocturnal and come to light

Season

adults fly from August to October

Food

larvae bore in stems or rhizomes of various species of burdock (Arctium), thistle (Cirsium), teasel (Dipsacus), and sometimes vervain (Verbena), mullein (Verbascum) [Handfield, 1999]; Wood Betony (Pedicularis canadensis)

Life Cycle

one generation per year
mated pair; larva; larva in thistle stem; spent pupa; adult

See Also

adults of similar Papaipema species are pictured in the Jim Vargo and Jim Wiker links at MPG given below

Print References

Handfield, Louis. 1999. Les Guides des Papillons du Quebec. Broquet. 662 pp.

Internet References

live adult images by various photographers, plus common name reference (Moth Photographers Group)
adult images (Larry Line, Maryland)
pinned adult image and photos of related species by Jim Wiker (Moth Photographers Group)
pinned adult image and photos of related species by Jim Vargo (Moth Photographers Group)
distribution in Canada list of provinces (U. of Alberta, using CBIF data)