Moths of North Carolina

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Mythimna unipuncta (Haworth, 1809) - Armyworm Moth

Taxonomy

Superfamily:
Noctuoidea

Family:
Noctuidae

Subfamily:
Noctuinae

Tribe:
Leucaniini

P3 Number:
932935

MONA Number:
10438.00

MONA Synonym:
Pseudaletia unipuncta

Other Common Names:
The White-speck, The One-Spot

Comments: A member of a very large worldwide genus. Four species occur in North America north of Mexico (Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010), two of which have been recorded in North Carolina.

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984; as Pseudaletia unipuncta); Beadle and Leckie (2012)

Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD

Adult Markings: A medium-sized Noctuid whose somewhat elongated forewings have a somewhat pointed apex marked with a oblique apical dash. The ground color is generally brown and dusted with fuscous (Forbes, 1954), but may reddish-brown in some specimens or particularly along the coast, may be a pale off-white. Transverse lines are absent except for a series of dark dots (obsolete in some specimens) that precede the apical dash. These dots curve towards the costa from the dash but run in a straight line from the dash to the inner margin. Both an orbicular and reniform spot may be present, filled with paler brown and often with a darker center. Both spots may be obsolete, however. More typically present is a white dot located on the median vein, similar to that of Leucania species. The vein may be blackish before and after this point. In Leucania species with similar markings and ground color, the apical dash is missing and the hindwings are pale whitish or pure white instead of the fuscous gray found in unipuncta.

Wingspan: 35-45 mm (Forbes, 1954)

Adult Structural Features: The thorax is unmarked but has a narrow crest, unlike species of Leucania.

Structural photos

Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.

Distribution in North Carolina

Distribution: This species is found from the high mountains to the barrier islands, although in some areas it may occur primarily as a migrant or overwintering species

County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.


Flight Dates: High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft. Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft. Piedmont (Pd) Coastal Plain (CP) Click on graph to enlarge
Immature Dates: High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft. Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft. Piedmont (Pd) Coastal Plain (CP) Click on graph to enlarge

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: Wagner et al. (2011) list lawns, gardens, field, wet meadows, and other grassy habitats. This species is highly migratory, and adults can be found virtually anywhere.

Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed mainly on grasses but also consume forbs and woody plants; many crop species are attacked, including wheat, corn, oats, and rye (Wagner et al., 2011). We do not have any feeding records in North Carolina. - View

Wikipedia

See also Habitat Account for General Fields, Gardens, and Ruderal Habitats

Status in North Carolina

Natural Heritage Program Status:

Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 SNR [S5]

State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.

Comments: This is a major crop pest across much of the world and is in no need of conservation efforts.

Photo Gallery for Mythimna unipuncta - Armyworm Moth

308 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.

	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-11-09 Brunswick Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-11-08 Brunswick Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-11-07 Brunswick Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2025-11-07 Wake Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: R. Newman on 2025-11-06 Carteret Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Marilyn Westphal on 2025-11-06 Henderson Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Dean Furbish, Lior S. Carlson, John F. Jarvis, S. L. Reeves on 2025-11-05 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Tony McBride, Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2025-10-28 Carteret Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Tony McBride, Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2025-10-27 Carteret Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-10-25 Brunswick Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Michael P. Morales on 2025-10-23 Cumberland Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2025-10-22 Pender Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-10-21 Wilson Co. Comment:		Recorded by: R. newman on 2025-10-18 Carteret Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-09-27 Brunswick Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-09-19 Wilson Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: R. Newman on 2025-08-28 Carteret Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2025-08-25 Wake Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-08-22 Brunswick Co. Comment:		Recorded by: R. Newman on 2025-08-22 Carteret Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Kevin Bischof, Rich Teper, Patrick Coin on 2025-08-16 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-08-16 Wilson Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Kevin Bischof, Rich Teper, Patrick Coin on 2025-08-15 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-08-09 Ashe Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-07-27 Wilson Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2025-07-22 Mecklenburg Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2025-06-30 Wake Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Patrick Coin on 2025-06-29 Moore Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-22 Buncombe Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George, Larry Chen, Sarah Toner, Joye Zhou on 2025-06-20 Richmond Co. Comment: