Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFNoctuidae Members:
Anicla Members:
2 NC Records

Anicla simplicius (Morrison, 1874) - Simplicius Dart

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Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: NoctuidaeSubfamily: NoctuinaeTribe: NoctuiniP3 Number: 933217 MONA Number: 10907.00 MONA Synonym: Euagrotis simplicius
Comments: One of fifteen species in this genus that occur in North American north of Mexico (Lafontaine and Schmidt), six of which have been recorded in North Carolina
Species Status: Previously placed in genus Euagrotis (e.g., Hodges et al., 1984), which is now treated as a subgenus of Anicla (Lafontaine, 2004)
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Lafontaine (2004)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium-sized, pale grayish-brown Dart. The head, thorax, and forewing ground color are a fairly uniform grayish-brown. The collar lacks a transverse band and the antemedian, postmedian, and other transverse lines on the forewing are also usually absent. Three dark longitudinal streaks or spots are present in the center of the wing, representing the orbicular, claviform, and reniform spots (Lafontaine, 2004). Hindwings are whitish with a pale fuscous shade along the costa. Some forms of Euagrotis illapsa are similar in size and color but possess well-marked transverse lines on the collar and forewings.
Forewing Length: 14-16 mm (Lafontaine, 2004)
Adult Structural Features: Males have fully developed brushes -- normally concealed within internal pouches -- at the base of the abdomen, similar to those of Euagrotis lubricans (Lafontaine, 2004)
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: Immature stages are unknown (Lafontaine, 2004)
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Both of our specimens were collected in the Fall-line Sandhills subregion of the Coastal Plain
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)

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Flight Comments: Lafontaine (2004) states that there are several broods per year. Our records come from June and September.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Both of our records come from wetlands embedded within extensive areas of dry Longleaf Pine-dominated sandhills
Larval Host Plants: Host plants appear to be unknown. - View
Observation Methods: Comes to lights, but to what extent is unknown
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status: W3
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G4 [S1S2]
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments: We have just two records for this species, from a region of the Fall-line Sandhills that has been subject to extensive Lepidopteran surveys. That is too few to clearly establish its status as a resident species in North Carolina and, in general, too little is known about the host plants and habitat associations of this species to estimate its conservation status.