Moths of North Carolina

Scientific Name:	Common Name:		Family (Alpha):

View PDF	Erebidae Members:	Haploa Members:	10 NC Records
Haploa confusa (Lyman, 1887) - Confused Haploa Moth

No image for this species.

Taxonomy

Superfamily: Noctuoidea	Family: Erebidae	Subfamily: Arctiinae	Tribe: Arctiini	P3 Number: 930346.00	MONA Number: 8112.00
Comments: One of six species currently recognized in North America, all of which occur in North Carolina

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)	Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, GBIF, BOLD	Technical Description, Adults: Forbes (1960)	Technical Description, Immature Stages: Wagner (2005)
Adult Markings: The smallest and most heavily-marked species of Haploa, the forewing is primarily brown with the white areas reduced to spots. The pattern on the forewing is similar to the darkest forms of lecontei: all margins are outlined with black (usually interrupted at the wing angles), an antemedian line runs from the costa to the inner margin, a postmedian line runs from beyond the midpoint of the costa to the inner margin just above the anal angle, and a diagonal line runs from the outer margin just below the apex to the inner margin, where it forms a large blotch with the terminus of the postmedian line. Characteristically, a white spot is located in the middle of that blotch, unlike lecontei, where the blotch is usually a solid black; there may also be dark blotches or spurs projecting from the diagonal lines forward into the median area.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: According to Wagner (2005), the larvae of confusa is similar to lecontei, but has a more uniform, evenly bright yellow dorsal stripe (constricted on the abdominal segments in lecontei), a more evident, broken sub-dorsal stripe, and an often less developed lateral stripe.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.

Distribution in North Carolina


Distribution: A northern species, confusa appears to be confined to the Mountains in North Carolina
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
Flight Comments: Appears to have a single, mid-season flight

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: All of our records come from slopes and ridges, probably mostly in association with hardwood forests

Larval Host Plants: Probably polyphagous, feeding on many species of herbaceous and woody plants, but possibly preferring species in the Asteraceae and Boraginaceae (Forbes, 1960; Wagner, 2005) - View

Observation Methods: Comes moderately well to blacklights, but none of our records come from bait

Wikipedia

Status in North Carolina

Natural Heritage Program Status:

Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 [SU]

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

Comments: This species appears to be uncommon to rare montane disjunct in North Carolina but not enough is known about its overall distribution in the Mountains, its abundance, and its habitat associations to estimate its conservation status in the state

Haploa confusa (Lyman, 1887) - Confused Haploa Moth