Moths of North Carolina

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View PDF	Geometridae Members:	Nepytia Members:	83 NC Records

Nepytia canosaria (Walker, [1863]) - False Hemlock Looper Moth

Taxonomy

Superfamily:
Geometroidea

Family:
Geometridae

Subfamily:
Ennominae

Tribe:
Ourapterygini

P3 Number:
91a1393

MONA Number:
6906.00

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)

Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD

Technical Description, Adults: Forbes (1948)

Adult Markings: The ground color of this species is white, but it may be heavily dusted with gray (Forbes, 1948). The antemedian and postmedian lines are dark and strongly scalloped; in dark individuals, the lines are defined by adjoining white shading. The fringe has a basal row of dots that is sometimes not evident in worn specimens. The vertex is usually yellow in males but can be either yellow or white in females.

Wingspan: 25-30 mm (Forbes, 1948)

Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.

Distribution in North Carolina

Distribution:

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

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: Our records come primarily from cove forests but also from alluvial forests and at least a few high elevation outcrops.

Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on fir (Abies), Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), spruces (Picea), and occasionally other conifers (Maier et al., 2011). - View

Wikipedia

See also Habitat Account for Hemlock Forests

Status in North Carolina

Natural Heritage Program Status:

Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 SNRR [S2S3]

State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.

Comments:

Photo Gallery for Nepytia canosaria - False Hemlock Looper Moth

47 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.

	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-10-13 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-10-12 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-10-08 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-10-05 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2025-08-28 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-08-15 Ashe Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Kevin Bischof, Rich Teper, Patrick Coin on 2025-08-15 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-10-31 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-10-24 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-10-20 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-10-07 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2024-08-05 Transylvania Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2024-06-25 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-10-28 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2023-08-18 Watauga Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-11-06 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-10-25 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-10-24 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-10-12 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-09-16 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2021-10-25 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2021-10-14 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2021-10-11 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2021-10-08 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Stephen Hall and Bo Sullivan on 2021-09-13 Ashe Co. Comment:		Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2021-09-10 Transylvania Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2021-09-04 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2020-11-10 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2020-10-28 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2020-10-22 Madison Co. Comment: