Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFTortricidae Members: Acleris Members: 2 NC Records

Acleris forbesana (McDunnough, 1934) - Forbes' Acleris

Acleris forbesanaAcleris forbesana
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Tortricoidea		 Family:
Tortricidae		Subfamily:
Tortricinae		Tribe:
Tortricini		P3 Number:
51a0025		 MONA Number:
3525.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: Acleris forbesana is distinctive in having a dark triangular patch midway along the costa, and a forewing ground that is dirty white with diffuse blotches that resemble smudged ink. The palps and head are white and the thorax white with a curved line of scales near the base and a spot of dark scales near the distal tip. The forewing ground is white, but overlain with dark gray scales that provide a dirty grayish-white appearance. These are arranged into large, diffuse blotches that are most prevalent on the apical half of the wing. A blackish costal triangle is centered just beyond the middle of the wing. It terminated near the center of the wing and has a smoothly rounded end. A small patch or two of raised dark scales are often evident near the center of the wing at around one-fourth the wing length. The fringe is dirty white, while the hindwing is pale gray to silvery gray with a concolorous fringe.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Acleris forbesana is found mostly at northern latitudes, with disjunct groups found in both western and eastern North America. Populations in the West occur from central California northward through the Pacific Northwest to British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan. In the East the range includes portions of southern Canada (Manitoba; Ontario; Quebec; Newfoundland; New Brunswick) and the northern U.S. from Maine to Minnesota, and southward to northern Illinois, Michigan, New York and Massachusetts. A southern disjunct group is also present in the southern Appalachians in eastern Tennessee and North Carolina. As of 2024, our very limited records are all from high-elevation sites in the southern Blue Ridge.
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Acleris forbesanaAlamance 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%20Hanover 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 observed from March through November in different areas of the range, with many populations probably having two generations per year. As of 2024, our very limited records are from mid- to late-July.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats:
Larval Host Plants: Larvae reportedly feed on dogwoods (Brown et al., 2008; Robinson et al., 2010; Lam et al., 2011). The reported hosts include California Dogwood (Cornus californica), Red-osier Dogwood (C. sericea). We do not have any feeding records in North Carolina. - View
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks:
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Acleris forbesana - Forbes' Acleris

Photos: 2
Acleris forbesanaRecorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-31
Macon Co.
Comment: 		Acleris forbesanaRecorded by: Michael Pogue on 2004-07-20
Haywood Co.
Comment: BOLD specimen: CreativeCommons Attribution; CBG Photography Group, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics.