Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFCrambidae Members: Palpita Members: 4 NC Records

Palpita maritima Sullivan & Solis, 2013 - Coastal Palpita

Palpita maritimaPalpita maritima
view caption
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Pyraloidea		 Family:
Crambidae		Subfamily:
Pyraustinae		Tribe:
Spilomelini		P3 Number:
80a0985		 MONA Number:
5223.10
Comments: "There is plenty of possibility for confusion in these species. There are general trends in each, but a great deal of variation" (Scholtens, 2017).
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The following description is from Sullivan and Solis (2013). The labial palps are brown above and white below, while the haustellum is white. The frons is brown with darker, chocolate-colored patches laterally, and the vertex is white centrally with brown on the sides. The antenna is brown dorsally and tan ventrally, with the scape brown and the pedicel brown with white scales at the base. The thorax is fuscous, while the first two abdominal segments have white scaling dorsally, and fuscous and chocolate scaling laterally. The remaining abdominal segments are chocolate colored dorsally with scattered fuscous scales covering most of the segment. There is also a row of white scales distally, which gives the abdomen a ringed appearance. The terminal segment is largely fuscous, and the abdomen extends one-third the length beyond the wing margins.

The forewing has a slightly rounded apex and the ground color is brown with a mixture of chocolate and fuscous scales. The orbicular and reniform spots are well-marked, and there is a narrow, dark-brown to blackish terminal line that is uniform and continuous. The wing pattern varies depending on the degree of wear, with some individuals having well-marked chocolate-colored areas. The hindwing is fuscous and less patterned than the forewing, with a narrow, dark marginal line and a curved discal spot. The forelegs have alternating brown and white-scaled regions, while the middle legs are brown dorsally and white ventrally. The hindlegs are white. A single pair of spurs is on the mid-tibia, while there are two pairs on the hind-tibia with the smaller, distal spurs brown and the proximal spurs white. Some individuals have all of the spurs white. The females are similar to the males, but with the scaling on the leg spurs usually white with scattered brown scales.

Although it was not mentioned in the original paper by Sullivan and Solis (2013), the terminal black line on both wings of P. maritima is usually uniform and continuous, while the terminal line on one or both wings of P. freemanalis and P. arsaltealis is broken into a series of dark spots. Sullivan and Solis (2013) noted that genitalia provide the most reliable way to distinguish among these species, but specimens that have both wings with a continuous terminal line can reliably be assigned to P. maritima.
Wingspan: 29 mm (Sullivan and Solis, 2013).
Forewing Length: 12 mm (Sullivan and Solis, 2013).
Adult Structural Features: Sullivan and Solis (2013) provide detailed descriptions and illustrations of the male and female genitalia. The male characters, especially the shield-like juxta with two posterior pointed projections, and the medial ribbon-like sclerotization across the valva, are diagnostic.
Structural photos
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable only by close inspection of structural features or by DNA analysis.
Immatures and Development: The larval life history is undocumented.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: This seemingly rare species is only known from North Carolina, Florida and extreme southern Alabama. As of 2023, we have only two site records.
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Palpita maritimaAlamance 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: Sullivan and Solis (2013) noted that the adults are locally abundant in late March and early April in coastal maritime forests. Additional captures were made in the same habitat in June, July and August, but very few individuals were taken relative to the March-April catches.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Our two site records come from maritime forest habitats on barrier islands that are dominated by Live Oak, Laurel Oak, Loblolly Pine, Yaupon Holly and Smilax species. A record from Florida was from a Slash Pine/ palmetto flatwoods community.
Larval Host Plants: The host plants have not been confirmed but Sullivan and Sollis (2013) speculated that Wild Olive (Cartrema americanum) is a likely choice since several other members of this genus specialize on members of the Oleaceae and Cartrema is a common plant in the maritime forests where P. maritima has been found. In North Carolina, J.B. Sullivan recorded a larva feeding on Wild Olive. - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights.
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for Live Oak Forests and Maritime Scrub Thickets
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR S1S3
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments: This is a seemingly rare species that reaches its northern limits in North Carolina.

 Photo Gallery for Palpita maritima - Coastal Palpita

Photos: 5
Palpita maritimaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-03-29
Brunswick Co.
Comment: 		Palpita maritimaRecorded by: Dean Furbish, Lior S. Carlson on 2024-08-12
Pamlico Co.
Comment:
Palpita maritimaRecorded by: J.B. Sullivan on 2008-04-10
Carteret Co.
Comment: 		Palpita maritimaRecorded by: J.B. Sullivan on 2008-04-10
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Palpita maritimaRecorded by: J.B. Sullivan; R. Broadwell; and B. Smith on 1994-03-31
Brunswick Co.
Comment: Holotype; specimen in the USNM. Collected during the Asian Gypsy Moth Non-Target Survey