Moths of North Carolina
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Feltia Members:
35 NC Records

Feltia manifesta (Morrison, 1875) - Adobe Dart

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: NoctuidaeSubfamily: NoctuinaeTribe: NoctuiniP3 Number: 933494.00 MONA Number: 10666.00 MONA Synonym: Trichosilia manifesta
Comments: One of 18 species in this genus that occur in North America (Lafontaine, 2004), seven of which have been recorded in North Carolina. Feltia manifesta was previously included in the genus Trichosilia, which Lafontaine (2004) treats as a subgenus within Feltia. Nine other species are included in this subgenus, of which only Feltia geniculata occurs in North Carolina.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1954; as Agrotis manifesta); Lafontaine (2004)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Crumb (1956); Lafontaine (2004)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium-sized Noctuine, with fairly broad forewings that range from fawn-brown to gray. The antemedian and postmedian lines are usually sharply marked and contrastingly black, as are the reniform and orbicular spots. Hind wings are a fairly dark fuscous. As noted by Lafontaine, the gray form is similar in appearance to Eucoptocnemis dapsilis, which occurs in the same habitats in the southern part of our Coastal Plain. However, the two species do not overlap in flight period, with mainfesta flying in the spring and dapsilis flying in the fall (see Lafontaine for a description of other morphological differences).
Wingspan: 38 mm (Forbes, 1954)
Adult Structural Features: Males have broadly pectinate antennae, which is simple in the females. The vestiture on the body is hairy, unlike other members of the Agrotinae except for Eucoptocnemis (Lafontaine, 2004). Male vesica are distinctly different from those of other members of Feltia (see Lafontaine, 2004, for details and illustrations).
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: Larvae apparently have not been observed in the wild but have been reared from eggs of wild-caught females (Crumb, 1956; Lafontaine, 2004). They are generally dark gray on the sides with a somewhat paler dorsal surface consisting of a series of darker diamond-shaped marks running down the center, separated by a dorso-lateral series of paler triangular-shaped marks (see Lafontaine, 2004, for an illustration). Larvae apparently overwinter, pupating in the spring shortly before emerging as adults.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from close inspection of specimens or by DNA analysis.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Most of our records come from the Coastal Plain, including the Northern Coastal Plain, at least in maritime dune habitats, and more widely in the Southern Coastal Plain, including the Fall-line Sandhills. It also occurs in at least the southern part of the Mountains, but its distribution in that region needs to be further documented.
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
Flight Comments: Flies in the late winter to early spring
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: The majority of our records come from xeric sandy habitats, including Maritime Dry Grasslands, Coastal Fringe Sandhills, aeolian sandridges, and Xeric Sandhill Scrub. This is consistent with the habitat description given by Lafontaine (2004), who also mentions records from limestone barrens. While our montane records are not associated with limestone, they come from dry ridges dominated by oak-hickory forests.
Larval Host Plants: Host plants appear to be unrecorded in the wild, but Crumb (1956) reared larvae on White Clover. This suggests that they feed on forbs but the range of species needs to be determined by field observations. - View
Observation Methods: Comes well to blacklights. Whether they also come to bait is unknown.
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status: W2
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G4 S3S4
State Protection: Listed as Significantly Rare by the Natural Heritage Program. That designation, however, does not confer any legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments: This species appears to be a narrow habitat specialist, at least in the Coastal Plain. Recent discoveries have extended its known range within the state, however, which reduces its apparent conservation status. We recommend that it now be taken off NHP's Significantly Rare list and placed on the Watch List instead.

 Photo Gallery for Feltia manifesta - Adobe Dart

Photos: 2

Recorded by: Ed Corey on 2014-04-26
Currituck Co.
Comment: kept 3		Recorded by: Ed Corey on 2014-04-26
Currituck Co.
Comment: