Moths of North Carolina
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
 Family (Alpha):
« Home »
View PDFGeometridae Members: Eubaphe Members: 230 NC Records

Eubaphe mendica (Walker, 1854) - Beggar Moth

Eubaphe mendicaEubaphe mendicaEubaphe mendica
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Geometroidea		 Family:
Geometridae		Subfamily:
Larentiinae		Tribe:
Eudulini		P3 Number:
91a0130		 MONA Number:
7440.00		 Other Common Name:
The Beggar
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: Pale yellow with two rows of dark spots plus one submarginal spot located along the middle of the outer margin (Forbes, 1948). The spot in the cell is elongated and the outer band is typically fairly wide.
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.
Eubaphe mendicaAlamance 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.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Our records come almost entirely from wet-mesic hardwood forests, ranging from bottomland and mesic hardwoods in the Coastal Plain and Piedmont to cove forests and northern hardwoods in the mountains. Very few come from open habitats and even those have hardwoods close by. Virtually none come from dry-xeric habitats.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on violets (Wagner, 2005) but according to Forbes (1948, citing McDunnough) they also feed on maple. We do not have any feeding records in North Carolina. - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Wet-Mesic Hardwood Forests
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 SNR [S4S5]
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Eubaphe mendica - Beggar Moth

 112 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-23
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-22
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: A. Kauppila on 2025-06-18
Burke Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka, Mark Basinger and Becky Elkin on 2025-05-18
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Emily Stanley on 2025-05-15
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: David George, Bonnie Eamick on 2025-04-25
Wake Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: John Petranka on 2024-09-22
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-08-17
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-05
Mitchell Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-08-01
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-07-23
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2024-07-14
Watauga Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2024-07-08
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-06-24
Yancey Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-06-23
Yancey Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: K. Bischof on 2024-06-19
Transylvania Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Owen McConnell on 2024-06-17
Graham Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-06-12
Madison Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-06-03
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Emily Stanley on 2024-05-23
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-20
Madison Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: David George, Rich Teper on 2024-05-13
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-11
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Simpson Eason on 2023-09-20
Durham Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-08-18
Caswell Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-08-14
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-07-31
Madison Co.
Comment:
Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-07-26
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-21
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Eubaphe mendicaRecorded by: Stephen Dunn on 2023-07-14
Orange Co.
Comment: