Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFNotodontidae Members:
Datana Members:
184 NC Records

Datana angusii Grote & Robinson, 1866 - Angus's Datana Moth


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Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: NotodontidaeSubfamily: PhalerinaeP3 Number: 930034.00 MONA Number: 7903.00
Comments: One of 16 species in this genus, all but one of which occurs in North America north of Mexico (Miller et al., 2018). Nine have been recorded in North Carolina.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1948); Miller et al., (2018)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Forbes (1948); Wagner (2005); Miller et al., (2018)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: Along with ministra, major, and drexelli, angusii possesses a crenulate outer margin; our other species have a smooth margin instead (Forbes, 1948; Miller et al., 2018). Forbes describes the ground color of angusii as ranging from dull luteous to a dark gray- or umber-brown, with no reddish or yellowish shading but sometimes with a greenish tinge. As in ministra, the area between the costa and cubitus is not contrastingly lighter than the lower portion of the wing and the two spots are either absent or obscure, with the outer one sometimes incorpoated in the second line (Forbes, 1948). The lines are dark brown, as is the disc of the thorax. Datana ministra is most similar in pattern but is reddish- to yellowish-brown and has a reddish thoracic disc and reddish-brown lines.
Wingspan: 45 mm (Forbes, 1948)
Adult Structural Features: Valves of the males have a single transverse flange; in angusii this flange is dentate or tuberculate rather than smooth as in ministra (Forbes, 1948; Miller et al., 2018). The uncus is bifid, whereas it is rounded over in ministra (Forbes, 1948). See Forbes and Miller et al. for additional details and illustrations. Miller et al., also describe distinctive features of the female structures.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: Larvae are black with pale yellow stripes. The thoracic shield is usually black and the prolegs are reddish (Wagner, 2005). The thoracic shield can sometimes be reddish-orange, but is never the yellow found in ministra (Miller et al., 2018).
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
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)

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