Moths of North Carolina
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Idia Members:
178 NC Records

Idia diminuendis (Barnes & McDunnough, 1918) - Orange-spotted Idia Moth

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: ErebidaeSubfamily: HerminiinaeP3 Number: 930477.00 MONA Number: 8329.00
Comments: One of eighteen species recorded in North America (Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010), twelve of which are found 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 (1954); Rings et al. (1992)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The second and third segments of the palps are ochre (Forbes, 1954). The ground color of the forewings is dull fuscous with a slight purplish tint. The lines are well-defined, black, waved and irregular. The subterminal is more irregularly dentate and incomplete. The spots are dull orange and surrounded by a black border. The reniform lacks a dark central lunule. Idia aemula can also have orange spots but is larger and differs in the shape and color of its palps.
Wingspan: 18 mm (Forbes, 1954)
Adult Structural Features: Belongs to Forbes' subgenus Pseudaglossa, characterized by long palps -- reaching the vertex -- and with the third segement very long, conical, and smoothly scaled (Forbes, 1954).
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 from a wide variety of forested and open habitats.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on dead leaves and other detritus (Wagner et al., 2011) - View
Observation Methods: Comes to bait and blacklights but not as abundantly as other members of this genus
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Mixed Habitats
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G4 S4
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Idia diminuendis - Orange-spotted Idia Moth

Photos: 24

Recorded by: Emily Stanley on 2024-06-18
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-06-10
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-08-31
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-31
Macon Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-31
Swain Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik, Rich Teper, Becky Watkins on 2023-07-29
Swain Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-07-21
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2023-05-17
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2023-05-12
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-08-01
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2022-07-27
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: tom ward on 2022-07-05
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: tom ward on 2022-07-05
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2022-05-29
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2021-06-12
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2020-06-15
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2020-06-15
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2019-07-15
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2019-05-30
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2019-05-28
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Owen McConnell on 2018-07-07
Graham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Stephen Hall on 2015-08-11
Cherokee Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Doug Blatny/Jackie Nelson on 2012-07-16
Ashe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Paul Scharf on 2011-05-17
Warren Co.
Comment: