Moths of North Carolina
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Lambdina Members:
228 NC Records

Lambdina fervidaria (Hübner, [1831]) - Curve-lined Looper


Taxonomy
Superfamily: Geometroidea Family: GeometridaeSubfamily: EnnominaeTribe: OurapteryginiP3 Number: 911333.00 MONA Number: 6894.00
Comments: One of nine members of this genus that occur in North America, four of which have been recorded in North Carolina. Two subspecies have been described, L. fervidaria fervidaria, which is primarily southern, and L. fervidaria athasaria, which has sometimes been considered a separate species (e.g., Forbes, 1948; Wagner et al., 2001; Maier et al., 2011). NatureServe currently recognizes athasaria as a full species.
Species Status: There are several lines of evidence that indicate that Lambdina fervidaria and L. pellucidaria may be conspecific. Sperling et al. (1999) found virtually no difference in the mitochondrial DNA between the two species and Duff et al. (2001) found no differences between their mating pheromones, flight seasons, and diel activity patterns, all of which might serve as important isolating mechanisms. Although host plant and habitat differences have also been claimed to separate the two, Wagner et al. (2001) and Wagner (2005) concluded that much work still needs to be done to demonstrate that the larvae can actually be segregated based on host plants. In the eastern Piedmont of North Carolina, we collect both species in the same samples from typical stands of hardwoods with pines either mixed in, or where pure stands are located in close proximity. Some of the individuals in these samples appear to share characteristics of both species, i.e., dark brownish gray ground color but yellow edged lines (as described for subspecies athasaria). On the other hand, L. pellucidaria appears to be essentially single-brooded in North Carolina and has a range that includes the Coastal Plain; L. fervidaria, in contrast, flies during most of the growing season and appears to be rare in the Coastal Plain. We agree with Wagner et al. (2001) that a revision of this genus is badly needed. Lambdina athasaria is a previously described species that is also very closely related to L. fervidaria. It is currently treated here and in the latest North American checklist (Pohl and Nanz, 2023) as a subspecies of L. fervidaria (L. f. athasaria).
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1948)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Forbes (1948); Wagner et al. (2001); Wagner (2005); Maier et al. (2013)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium-sized, yellowish-brown Geometrid. The ground color is a pale cream, overlain by a conspicuous, coarse dusting of somewhat darker gray; in the form found from southern New Jersey to North Carolina (probably true fervidaria according to Forbes), the dark dusting on the wings can be dominant, with only flecks of the cream color showing through (Forbes, 1948). Both the antemedian and postmedian are darker brown but edged with yellow or cream on the sides away from the median area; in the darker southern form (fervidaria according to Forbes, 1948), the yellow edging to the lines is more contrasting. The veins may also be edged with cream and the head, antennae, and fore coxae are yellow. Lambinda pellucidaria is similar but has a darker, smoother, and more translucent gray-brown ground color, lacking both the conspicuous dusting and yellow edging to the lines. Lambdina canitiaria is also similar but has a gray rather than yellow head (Forbes, 1948). Lambdina fiscellaria, as well as Besma endropiaria and pale females of B. quercivoraia, are other similarly colored species but have more angular wings. Lambdina fiscellaria additionally has a strongly angled postmedian -- smoothly curved or relatively straight in fervidaria and the two Besma species -- and Besma usually have at least a partial submedian line that is lacking in Lambdina species (Forbes, 1948).
Wingspan: 30 mm (Forbes, 1948)
Adult Structural Features: Antennae are pectinate in the males, simple in the females. Male pectinations may be as long as 2 mm.
Structural photos
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: Larvae are variable in pattern and coloration but usually marked with a combination of gray, black, and white pinstripes and broader lines (see Wagner, 2005). Larvae of L. f. fervidaria, L. f. athasaria, and L. pellucidaria may not be separable and need to be reared to adulthood in order to determine the species or subspecies (if even that is possible).
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Recorded primarily in the Mountains and Piedmont in North Carolina, with only one sight record from the northern Coastal Plain.
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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