Moths of North Carolina
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Palthis Members:
702 NC Records

Palthis asopialis (Guenée, 1854) - Faint-spotted Palthis

Palthis asopialisPalthis asopialisPalthis asopialisPalthis asopialis
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Erebidae		Subfamily:
Herminiinae		P3 Number:
930552		 MONA Number:
8398.00
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 typically a dark, purplish brown (Forbes, 1954). The antemedian is dark brown, edged with pale, and usually angled at the middle. A diffuse, dark median shade runs obliquely across the wing but unlike P. angulalis is not strongly incurved at the inner margin. The postmedian and substerminal are both irregular; the subterminal is strongly oblique in from the costa. Both the orbicular and reniform spots are black and contrasting, with a pale line dividing the reniform. A pale terminal patch is bordered by a black, contrasting subterminal patch. Palthis angulalis is similar but is a paler reddish brown; the median shade is more strongly incurved at the inner margin; the orbicular is obsolete and the reniform is not divided by a pale line; the apical patch is usually reddish brown and the subapical patch is often yellowish but not contrastingly black.
Wingspan: 22 mm (Forbes, 1954)
Adult Structural Features: The palps of both sexes are very long and have a bushy tuft at the apex. In the males, the first two segments are strongly recurved and the palps lie over the back, reaching the abdomen; they are also often contrastingly orange-yellow and tucked in by the surrounding thoracic scales, forming what appears to be a pale, mid-dorsal line. In the females, the palps project forward.
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 asopialis
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Immature 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: Found in a wide range of habitats from swamps to barrens (Wagner et al., 2011). Our records come primarily from hardwood forests but including maritime forests, swamps, mesic slopes, and northern hardwoods
Larval Host Plants: Larvae are polyphagous, feeding on both living and dead plants. Wagner et al. (2011) specifically list wild indigo (Baptisia), beggarticks (Bidens), wild bean (Phaseolus), and Corn (Zea mays). - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Hardwood 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 asopialis - Faint-spotted Palthis

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

Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-05-03
Brunswick Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2025-05-01
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-04-29
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Dean Furbish and Joy Wiggins on 2025-04-27
Pender Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2025-04-19
Brunswick Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: R. Newman on 2025-04-17
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka, John Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2025-04-14
Bladen Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-11-25
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Martha Flanagan on 2024-11-22
Rowan Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Martha Flanagan on 2024-11-22
Rowan Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Martha Flanagan on 2024-11-22
Rowan Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: R. Newman on 2024-11-20
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: David George, Rich Teper on 2024-11-05
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: John Petranka on 2024-11-05
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-11-02
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George on 2024-11-01
Durham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: John Petranka on 2024-10-31
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: John Petranka on 2024-10-30
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2024-10-23
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-10-23
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Chuck Smith on 2024-10-22
Davidson Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: John Petranka on 2024-10-22
Wayne Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-10-21
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-10-13
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: John Petranka on 2024-10-13
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Chuck Smith on 2024-10-08
Davidson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: John Petranka on 2024-10-06
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2024-10-04
Wake Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Michael P. Morales on 2024-10-03
Cumberland Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-10-02
Madison Co.
Comment: