Moths of North Carolina
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Eupithecia Members:
925 NC Records

Eupithecia miserulata Grote, 1863 - Common Eupithecia Moth


Taxonomy
Superfamily: Geometroidea Family: GeometridaeSubfamily: LarentiinaeTribe: EupitheciiniP3 Number: 910324.00 MONA Number: 7474.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1948); McDunnough (1949)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The palps are long and porrect, with their dark, smokey brown color contrasting with the creamy-pale frons, which is crossed by narrow apical band of dark brown (McDunnough, 1949). The forewings are rather broad and with a rounded apex (Forbes, 1948). Their ground color is dull grayish brown; North Carolina specimens are often shaded with green -- particularly in winter specimens (not mentioned by either Forbes, McDunnough, or Rindge). The discal spot is contrastingly dark but the antemedian and postmedian lines are more obscurely marked. The subterminal line consists of a series of white spots -- often chevron-shaped -- with one located at the tornus usually larger and more conspicuous. The first segment of the abdomen is paler than the rest (McDunnough, 1949). Females in our populations have dark scaling on the basal half of the abdomen (Sullivan, pers. obs.).
Wingspan: 16 mm (Forbes, 1948)
Adult Structural Features: The antennae of the males have a distinctive long bristles arranged in three fascicles per segment (Forbes, 1948); females also have ciliate antennae. The eighth sternite has two heavy, asymmetrical, longitudinal bars (Forbes, 1948)
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from photos showing hindwings, abdomen, or other specialized views [e.g., frons, palps, antennae, undersides].
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Probably occurs statewide, and in a wide range of habitats.
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
Immature 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: Rindge (1985) mentions that miserulata is the only species in this genus that flies year-round
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: We have records from a very wide variety of open and forested, dry and wet forests. Many records come from residential areas.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae are highly polyphagous (Wagner, 2005). They are often found on flowers but also feed on a variety of woody trees and shrubs - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Mixed Habitats
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 S5
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
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 Photo Gallery for Eupithecia miserulata - Common Eupithecia Moth

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

Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2024-03-23
Wake Co.
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Recorded by: David George on 2024-03-15
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: David George, Becky Watkins on 2024-03-14
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: David George, Becky Watkins on 2024-03-14
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: David George on 2024-03-13
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2024-03-10
Wake Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-03-09
Brunswick Co.
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Recorded by: Emily Stanley on 2024-03-08
Buncombe Co.
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Recorded by: Dean Furbish and Joy Wiggins on 2024-03-07
Wake Co.
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Recorded by: R. Newman on 2024-03-05
Carteret Co.
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Recorded by: Andrew W. Jones on 2024-03-05
Polk Co.
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Recorded by: Dean Furbish and Joy Wiggins on 2024-03-05
Wake Co.
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Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-03-04
Madison Co.
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Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, Stephen Dunn on 2024-03-03
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-03-02
Wilson Co.
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Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2024-01-25
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: R. Newman on 2023-11-18
Carteret Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-11-17
Wilson Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-11-08
Wilson Co.
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Recorded by: David George on 2023-11-07
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: Andrew W. Jones on 2023-11-07
Polk Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-11-07
Wilson Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-10-26
Wilson Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Shields on 2023-10-13
Onslow Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-10-13
Wilson Co.
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Recorded by: David George on 2023-10-11
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-10-10
Wilson Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-10-09
Brunswick Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-10-04
Wilson Co.
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Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-10-01
Brunswick Co.
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