Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Grote & Robinson, 1870
Anthoecia thoreaui, Lygranthoecia thoreaui, Schinia thoreaui
Size
16 to 19 mm long. Wingspan 29 to 37 mm. Our largest Schinia
Identification
Thorax: Light or dark brown, very heavily scaled or hairy. Wings: Base and lower area of wings dark brown. Center of wing more grayish or lighter brown; areas very faintly outlined with white. Both dark areas curved, base and lower curve opposite each other. Wing tip border is grayish or lighter brown. Legs: Pale tan. The front shin (tibiae) is hairy and has an obvious series of long black spines in a semi-circular pattern at tip of shin.
Range
Mostly southeastern half of U.S.; Ontario, Canada.
Habitat
Fields edges and meadows.
Food
Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida)
Life Cycle
Females lay large eggs in flower heads of Ragweed. Larvae feed on flowers and developing seeds at night, hiding through the day on lower, usually dead leaves. Pupate below soil surface in early fall (Hardwick 1966). One generation per year. Larva have large heads; green with black spots, When mature, they are entirely brownish-grey, no spots.
Remarks
Types:
Holotype as Anthoecia thoreaui by Grote & Robinson, 1870. Type Locality: Atlantic District of U.S.A. In the British National Museum of Natural History, London, England.
Print References
Transactions of the American Entomology Society, 1870-71, Vol. 3, pg. 181 by Grote & Robinson.
Bulletin of the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences, 1875, Vol. 2 by Grote, pg. 220.
Bulletin of the Brooklyn Entomological Society, 1938, Vol. 33 by Wyatt, pp. 91-92.
A Monograph to the North American Heliothentinae (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), 1966 by Hardwick: Not Available.
Owlet Caterpillars of Eastern North America, 2011 by Wagner et al., pg. 351.