Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFCrambidae Members:
Eudonia Members:
3 NC Records

Eudonia alpina (Curtis, 1850) - No Common Name

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Taxonomy
Superfamily: Pyraloidea Family: CrambidaeSubfamily: ScopariinaeTribe: [Scopariini]P3 Number: 80a1390 MONA Number: 4737.00 MONA Synonym: Eudonia lugubralis
Comments: Munroe (1972) treated North America forms of a possible species complex that occurs at northern latitudes in North America and Eurasian as Eudonia lugubralis based on differences in genitalia, while treating the Eurasian forms as E. alpina. Nuss (1999) treated these two forms as a single species (E. alpina). BOLD shows the Eurasian forms occupying a separate branch from North American forms, but the genetic distance between the two branches is relatively small. Here, we treat the North American forms as E. alpina.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Munroe (1972)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: In this species the ground color of the forewing is medium gray with fine fuscous dusting that produces a dark bluish-gray general effect (Munroe, 1972). The antemedial and postmedial lines are pale or light fuscous. The antemedial is usually excurved and may be slightly dentate. The postmedial has a distinctive basally-pointed v-shaped projection at the radial vein below the costa (Munroe, 1972). The orbicular and claviform are small and brown. The claviform is located close to the antemedial but the orbicular is well separated from the antemedial and posterior to the claviform. The reniform is small and x- or 8-shaped.
Forewing Length: 8-12 mm (Munroe, 1972)
Adult Structural Features: Munroe (1972) has descriptions of the male and female genitalia.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from photos showing hindwings, abdomen, or other specialized views [e.g., frons, palps, antennae, undersides].
Immatures and Development: The larval life history of this species is undocumented.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Eudonia alpina has northern affinities and is found from Alaska and the Yukon Territory eastward across southern Canada to Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. Scattered populations have been found in the US in Montana, Minnesota, Maine, Ohio, West Virginia, eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. As of 2023, we have two isolated site records from high-elevation sites in the Great Smoky Mountains.
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: The adults have been observed from May through August in different areas of the range. As of 2023, our very limited records are all from early June.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: This species is generally affiliated with northern hardwoods or mixed northern hardwood-conifer forests.
Larval Host Plants: The food resources that larvae use are undocumented. It presumably does not feed on the leaves of vascular plants, and is suspected of feeding on mosses. - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights.
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR [S2S3]
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments: Populations in the southern Appalachians in North Carolina and Tennessee appear to be a southern disjunct of this largely northern species. It appears to be relatively rare in North Carolina and restricted to higher elevations in the Blue Ridge.