Moths of North Carolina

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View PDF	Erebidae Members:	Zanclognatha Members:	248 NC Records

Zanclognatha cruralis (Guenée, 1854) - Early Zanclognatha

Taxonomy

Superfamily:
Noctuoidea

Family:
Erebidae

Subfamily:
Herminiinae

P3 Number:
930498

MONA Number:
8351.00

Other Common Name:
Early Fan-foot

Comments: One of thirteen species in this genus that occur in North America north of Mexico (Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010; 2013; Wagner and McCabe, 2011), all of which have been recorded in North Carolina

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)

Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD

Adult Markings: This species and Z. obscuripennis are very similar in size and markings. The lines in both species are generally strongly marked and even rather than waved. The antemedian is bent just below the costa but otherwise runs fairly straight across the wings; the postmedian is sinuous but not dentate, and the subterminal is straight and typically conspicuous. Forbes (1954) describes cruralis as pale clay color to light fuscous, particularly in the first brood; second brood individuals can be much darker. The subterminal line is characteristically dark and contrasting with the paler ground color; if bordered by a pale line, the dark line is much more prominent. In Z. obscuripennis, the ground color of the forewings is typically darker, with the pale line of the subterminal more prominent.

Wingspan: 30 mm (Forbes, 1954)

Structural photos

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 mainly from wet to mesic hardwood forests, including bottomland hardwoods, mesic slopes, cove forests, and northern hardwoods. Only a few come from xeric woodlands, such as maritime forests or sand ridges.

Larval Host Plants: Larvae have been found on a wide variety of plant species, including hardwood trees and shrubs, forbs, and conifers. Wagner et al. (2011) specifically list beech (Fagus), hazel (Corylus), hemlock (Tsuga), maple (Acer), nettle (Urtica), and Red Spruce (Picea rubens). While dead and wilted leaves are readily eaten in captivity, this species is also frequently found up in foliage rather than on the ground as in other members of this genus. - View

Observation Methods: Comes to blacklights. Larvae are frequently found by beating foliage.

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 Zanclognatha cruralis - Early Zanclognatha

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

	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2025-07-29 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2025-07-26 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka, Mark Basinger and Becky Elkin on 2025-06-25 Mitchell Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-05-24 Richmond Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2025-05-23 Durham Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-05-09 Cumberland Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-05-05 Wilson Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Emily Stanley on 2025-04-21 Buncombe Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George on 2025-04-04 Durham Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2024-08-06 Transylvania Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2024-08-05 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-03 Mitchell Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2024-07-14 Watauga Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-06-19 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: John Petranka on 2024-06-19 Watauga Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-06-02 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka, Mark Basinger and Becky Elkin on 2024-05-16 Buncombe Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-05-15 Buncombe Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2024-05-15 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-05-14 Buncombe Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-14 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Rich Teper on 2024-05-13 Chatham Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2024-05-13 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2024-05-12 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-05-08 Wilson Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-05-08 Wilson Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Emily Stanley on 2024-05-01 Buncombe Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2024-04-29 Chatham Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2024-04-29 Chatham Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2024-04-29 Chatham Co. Comment: