Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Melanolophia canadaria (Guenée, [1858])
Tephrosia canadaria Guenée, 1857
Synonym
Melanolophia carbonata Cassino & Swett, 1923
Identification
Forewing mottled brown or grayish, crossed by 3 or 4 wavy lines (the postmedial - PM - line is the most prominent of these lines, distinctly denticulate, and often the only one to cross the wing without fading); a dark blotch where the PM line meets the inner margin usually contains a curved whitish "V" reminiscent of a "flying seagull" - a good field mark when present.
Genitalia:
Range
Florida to Nova Scotia, west to Saskatchewan, south to Texas.
Food
Larvae feed on leaves of birch, cherry, elm, maple, oak, pine.
Life Cycle
Two generations per year.
Overwinters in the larval stage in the ground.
(1)
Larva, larva, pupa, adult female:
See Also
Melanolophia signataria is extremely similar, but usually has more uniformly-colored wings (less mottling), and more objectively, typically has a more sinuous (somewhat "straighter") PM line, whereas
canadaria usually has a noticeably denticulate PM line. Poorly-marked individuals may be difficult to distinguish.
Print References
Covell Jr, C.V., 1984.
Field Guide to Moths of Eastern North America. Houghton Mifflin Company. p. 355, plate 52 #3.
(2)
Wagner, D.L.,
Caterpillars of Eastern North America: A Guide to Identification and Natural History. Princeton University Press. p. 159.
(3)Internet References
pinned adult images (Dalton State College, Georgia)
live larva image plus description and other info (Caterpillars of Eastern Forests, USGS)
