Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFErebidae Members: Palthis Members: 475 NC Records

Palthis angulalis (Hübner, 1796) - Dark-spotted Palthis

Palthis angulalisPalthis angulalisPalthis angulalisPalthis angulalis
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Erebidae		Subfamily:
Herminiinae		P3 Number:
930551		 MONA Number:
8397.00		 Other Common Name:
Spruce Harlequin
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The ground color is dull or reddish-brown, sometimes with purplish shading (Forbes, 1954). A dark median shade is the strongest marking and is strongly incurved at the inner margin. The orbicular is typically very small or missing but the reniform is well-defined and solid brown, not divided by a pale line as in asopialis. A terminal dark brown or reddish-brown patch is present, bordered by a subterminal patch that is often yellowish but not contrastingly dark brown as in asopialis.
Forewing Length: 20-25 mm (Forbes, 1954)
Adult Structural Features: The palps are very long in both sexes. In females, they project forward but in males, they are recurved over the back and somewhat covered over by the adjoining scales of the thorax; they are also pale, forming what appears to be a pale yellowish or off-white median line, but not as orange-yellow as in asopialis.
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.
Palthis angulalisAlamance Alexander Alleghany Anson Ashe Avery Beaufort Bertie Bladen Brunswick Buncombe Burke Cabarrus Caldwell Camden Carteret Caswell Catawba Chatham Cherokee Chowan Clay Cleveland Columbus Craven Cumberland Currituck Dare Davidson Davie Duplin Durham Edgecombe Forsyth Franklin Gaston Gates Graham Granville Greene Guilford Halifax Harnett Haywood Henderson Hertford Hoke Hyde Iredell Jackson Johnston Jones Lee Lenoir Lincoln Macon Madison Martin McDowell Mecklenburg Mitchell Montgomery Moore Nash New%20Hanover Northampton Onslow Orange Pamlico Pasquotank Pender Perquimans Person Pitt Polk Randolph Richmond Robeson Rockingham Rowan Rutherford Sampson Scotland Stanly Stokes Surry Swain Transylvania Tyrrell Union Vance Wake Warren Washington Watauga Wayne Wilkes Wilson Yadkin Yancey
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge 		Image showing flight dates by month for High Mountains greater than 4,000 feet, Low Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain: adults.
Immature Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge 		Image showing flight dates by month for High Mountains greater than 4,000 feet, Low Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain: immatures.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Wagner et al. (2011) list forests and woodlands as habitat. Our records largely agree with that description, with almost all coming from forested habitats rather than open, herb-dominated sites.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae are broadly polyphagous, feeding on a diverse range of forbs, hardwoods, and conifers. Wagner et al. (2011) specifically list fir (Abies), alder (Alnus), birch (Betula), chestnut (Castanea), ninebark (Physocarpus), spruce (Picea), Rhododendron, goldenrod (Solidago), and basswood (Tilia). In North Carolina, our only feeding record is from a hawthorn (Crataegus sp.). - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Forests
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 SNR [S5]
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Palthis angulalis - Dark-spotted Palthis

 202 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.
Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Jim Petranka, Becky Elkin and Marilyn Westphal. on 2025-09-05
Henderson Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Allison Garton on 2025-08-28
Moore Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Allison Garton on 2025-08-21
Moore Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Dean Furbish on 2025-08-16
Orange Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: David George, Kevin Bischof, Rich Teper, Patrick Coin on 2025-08-15
Transylvania Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Dean Furbish, Lior S. Carlson, Randy Emmitt on 2025-08-12
Alamance Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-08-09
Ashe Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Marilyn Westphal on 2025-08-09
Henderson Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-07-30
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-07-05
Wilson Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: David George on 2025-06-29
Richmond Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Jim Petranka, Mark Basinger and Becky Elkin on 2025-06-29
Richmond Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Melody McMichael on 2025-06-26
Forsyth Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-24
Buncombe Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: K. Bischof on 2025-06-24
Transylvania Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Allison Garton on 2025-06-23
Moore Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Allison Garton on 2025-06-20
Moore Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George, Larry Chen, Sarah Toner, Joye Zhou on 2025-06-20
Richmond Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Allison Garton on 2025-06-09
Moore Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: David George on 2025-06-07
Durham Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-05-09
Cumberland Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-05-01
Madison Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-04-28
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: David George, Bonnie Eamick on 2025-04-25
Wake Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Emily Stanley on 2025-04-18
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: R. Newman on 2025-04-17
Carteret Co.
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Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Dean Furbish on 2025-04-17
Wake Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Dean Furbish on 2025-04-17
Wake Co.
Comment:
Palthis angulalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-04-15
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Palthis angulalisRecorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-04-05
Chatham Co.
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