Moths of North Carolina
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Eoparargyractis Members:
1 NC Records

Eoparargyractis plevie (Dyar, 1917) - No Common Name

Eoparargyractis plevie
Taxonomy
Family: CrambidaeSubfamily: AcentropinaeTribe: ArgyractiniP3 Number: 80a1354 MONA Number: 4787.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Immature Stages: Fiance and Moeller (1977)                                                                                  
Adult Markings: In this species the palps and head are mostly whitish, while the forewing has a white ground color that is overlain with complex patterning. The basal half has a narrow inwardly curved brown line at the base that is followed by a broad zone of brown dusting in the sub-medial region. The dark brown median line is narrow and outwardly angled. Following this is a broad zone with dark brown speckling that is followed by a set of brown and white lines and bars that radiate from the tornus. Most of these widen to become wedge-shaped as they project to the costa. The most conspicuous is a wedge-shaped brown or brownish-orange costal bar in the subapical region that is margined by a very narrow, curved, white line basally, and a much thicker, wedge-shaped, white bar apically. The final mark is an orange bar along the termen that is thinly lined with brown scales. The hindwing marks are generally similar to those of the forewing except that the set of brown and white line and bars that radiate from the tornus on the forewing are replace by five black, irregular terminal eyespots that are flanked by smaller iridescent patches. The last spot near the apex has a black dash above it, and the eyespots are partially embedded in and preceded by a pale whitish zone.

Eoparargyractis plevie is most similar to E. irroratalis in size and general appearance, but the black terminal eyespots are smaller and more irregular. The terminal spot near the apex has a black dash above it that is missing in E. irroratalis, and the region in front of the terminal spots is pale and lacks the yellowish or orangish suffusion as seen in E. irroratalis.
Adult Structural Features: Eoparargyractis species in the Southeast have very similar genitalia that are of little diagnostic value. Munroe (1972) has a general description of the male and female genitalia that applies to Eoparargyractis irroratalis and other members of the genus.
Immatures and Development: The following life history account is based on that of Fiance and Moeller (1977) who conducted studies in Mirror Lake, New Hampshire where the larvae fed on Lobelia dortmanna, Isoetes tuckermani and I. echinospora. All of these plants form a rosette of stiff, narrow leaves, and the larvae construct a protective tube of silk and detritus at the base of the rosette. The larvae cut through and eat the epidermis that surrounds the intercellular air spaces of the largely hollow leaves of the hosts, and damage to the plants can be severe. Badly injured leaves die and separate from the plant, and the growing leaves may be deformed by the silken tube attachments.

The authors only observed single larva on L. dortmanna plants, but sometimes found several larvae on a single rosette of Isoetes tuckermani. The larvae were collected in Mirror Lake from August through mid-November, but feeding generally stopped after mid-September with the arrival of colder weather. The older larvae were around 11 mm long and had a translucent yellow head that only had black pigmentation along the adfrontal region and around the ocelli. Patches of setae and aquatic gills are present on the last two thoracic segments and on all abdominal segments, with the last forming a conspicuous terminal tuft. The larvae overwintered in their silk tubes. The authors only observed pupation and adult emergence in the laboratory, and estimated that pupation in the lake likely occurs around the end of May when water temperatures rise above 16-18 degrees Celsius, which is a critical threshold where larval development resumes. Pupation occurs underwater on the host plants at the base of the rosettes in oval-shaped cocoons. The cocoons are made of silk and ornamented with bits of vegetation. The pupae were 6-7 mm long and had four respiratory tubercles on abdominal segments two and three.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Eoparargyractis plevie is found in eastern North America and mostly at northern latitudes. The range includes portions of southern Canada (Quebec; New Brunswick; Nova Scotia) and nearby areas of the northern U.S. from Wisconsin across the Great Lakes region to the New England states. Isolated records are also known farther south in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida. As of 2023, we have a single record from Washington County.
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: The adults have been observed from April through October in different areas of the range, with June through August the peak months. As of 2023, our one record is from late-June.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: This species is generally associated with small, shallow, and often oligotrophic lakes and other wetlands with emergent, aquatic vegetation (Munroe, 1972; Fiance and Moeller, 1977). Our one record as of 2023 is from near the shoreline of Phelps Lake in Pettigrew State Park.
Larval Host Plants: The reported hosts include Dortmann's Cardinalflower (Lobelia dortmanna), Spiny-spore Quillwort (Isoetes echinospora) and Tuckerman's quillwort (I. tuckermanii). Fiance and Moeller (1977) documented these hosts and surmised that other aquatic plants might also be used. None of these northern species occur in North Carolina, and other hosts are likely used. - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to building and UV lights.
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR SU
State Protection:
Comments: We have a single record of this species as of 2023 and it is uncertain if it reflects a resident population or not.

 Photo Gallery for Eoparargyractis plevie - No common name

Photos: 2

Recorded by: J. A. Anderson / E. Corey on 2016-06-24
Washington Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: J. A. Anderson / E. Corey on 2016-06-24
Washington Co.
Comment: PETT - Came to light at park office @ -76.409569, 35.791901