Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFGelechiidae Members: Dichomeris Members: 1 NC Records

Dichomeris nenia Hodges, 1986 - No Common Name

No image for this species.
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Gelechioidea		 Family:
Gelechiidae		Subfamily:
Dichomeridinae		P3 Number:
59a0513		 MONA Number:
2284.10
Comments: Dichomeris is a large genus with several hundred species that occur throughout the world. Hodges (1986) recognized 74 species in North America north of Mexico, with 19 species groups. Most are leaftiers and they use a taxonomically diverse array of plant hosts, including members of 18 families of plants in North America. As of 2025, North Carolina has 35 documented species, and at least one undescribed species from the Sandhills.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: Dichomeris nenia has a uniformly orange to light brownish-orange forewing, with the exception of dark scales along the outer margin and two diffuse spots in the subapical region of the costa. There is also a series of three small, dark spots in the sub-basal (often obscure), medial, and post-medial region of the middle of the wing. Many specimens also have additional dark dusting along the inner margin, typically from the wing base to around two-thirds the wing length. The hindwing is brown with a prominent fringe, and the labial palp has a well-developed scale tuft and appears grizzled due to the white scale tips. The overall color of the palp, in addition to the vertex and head, is gray to grayish-brown. The thorax tends to be concolorous with the forewing ground except in the middle where it is grayish-brown, while the antenna is grayish-brown. The legs are light grayish-brown with a few white metatarsal rings, with the hindlegs being noticeably paler than the other two.
Adult Structural Features: Hodges (1986) has descriptions and illustrations of the male and female genitalia. Also, see images of a North Carolina specimen below.
Genitalia and other structural photos
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The larval hosts and life history are poorly documented. They are known to be leaftiers and to feed on the leaves of at least one species of legume, but likely use others.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable only through rearing to adulthood.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Dichomeris nenia has southern affinities, with most records from Florida and adjoining areas of Alabama near the Florida Panhandle. Scattered records are also known from central Texas, Arkansas, central Alabama, coastal North Carolina, and Maryland. As of 2025, we have a single record from Carteret County.
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Dichomeris neniaAlamance Alexander Alleghany Anson Ashe Avery Beaufort Bertie Bladen Brunswick Buncombe Burke Cabarrus Caldwell Camden Carteret Caswell Catawba Chatham Cherokee Chowan Clay Cleveland Columbus Craven Cumberland Currituck Dare Davidson Davie Duplin Durham Edgecombe Forsyth Franklin Gaston Gates Graham Granville Greene Guilford Halifax Harnett Haywood Henderson Hertford Hoke Hyde Iredell Jackson Johnston Jones Lee Lenoir Lincoln Macon Madison Martin McDowell Mecklenburg Mitchell Montgomery Moore Nash New Hanover Northampton Onslow Orange Pamlico Pasquotank Pender Perquimans Person Pitt Polk Randolph Richmond Robeson Rockingham Rowan Rutherford Sampson Scotland Stanly Stokes Surry Swain Transylvania Tyrrell Union Vance Wake Warren Washington Watauga Wayne Wilkes Wilson Yadkin Yancey
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge 		Image showing flight dates by month for High Mountains greater than 4,000 feet, Low Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain: adults.
Flight Comments: The adults have been found during almost every month of the year in Florida and nearby areas. Our one record as of 2025 was from late-June.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Our sole record comes from a barrier island where it was collected in a spoil area.
Larval Host Plants: R. 0. Kendall reared two specimens from Lindheimer's Indigo (Indigofera lindheimeriana) in Texas (Hodges, 1986), which is the only confirmed host that we are aware of as of 2025. In North Carolina, the larvae may feed on the native Carolina Indigo (I. caroliniana). Dichomeris acuminata is a closely-related species that feeds on several genera of legumes in Florida, which suggests that D. nenia might do the same. - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights.
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: [GNR] SU
State Protection:
Comments: