Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFErebidae Members: Metalectra Members: 264 NC Records

Metalectra discalis (Grote, 1876) - Common Fungus Moth

Metalectra discalisMetalectra discalisMetalectra discalis
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Erebidae		Subfamily:
Boletobiinae		P3 Number:
930679		 MONA Number:
8499.00
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 umber, strongly mottled with slate gray, brown, black, red, and luteous (Forbes, 1954). The antemedian is double and luteous, with a brown center. Its course is somewhat excurved and waved. The postmedian is single and black, following a sinuous but even course. It is followed by yellowish patch at the costa and by a series of black and luteous dots over the inner portion. A similar series of black and luteous dots occur along the veins in the subterminal area. The strongest line is the median, which is black, fairly broad, and often extending across the width of the wing. The reniform is also black, often followed by a luteous bar. Hindwings are similar in coloration and pattern to the forewings.

Metalectra quadrisignata is similar but often has a more extensive area of gray, often with a purplish sheen or rose shading. The luteous dots are sometimes absent and the median bar is usually narrower than in discalis, more undulating or incomplete. In males, the structural tufts of hair pencils on the legs are often more useful than the wing pattern and coloration. In relatively fresh specimens, the pair of tufts on the second abdominal segment are also diagnostic.
Adult Structural Features: In males, the fore tibiae and coxa and the hind tibiae possess large tufts of hair pencils. In M. quadrisignata, in contrast, no hair pencils are present and only a small amount of rough scaling (Forbes, 1954). The second segment of the abdomen has a pair of scale tufts that are absent in quadrisignata.
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.
Metalectra discalisAlamance 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.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Wagner et al. (2011) list woodlands and forests as habitat. Our records come areas where hardwoods are present, from both dry and wet sites.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on bracket fungus and other fungi, and have also been reared on algae (Wagner et al., 2011). - 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 Metalectra discalis - Common Fungus Moth

 106 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-08-14
Ashe Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-07-12
Rowan Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: David George, David Bradley, Becky Watkins, David Cheng, Michelle Lotker, Tracy Feldman, et al. on 2025-06-28
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-24
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: K. Bischof on 2025-06-07
Transylvania Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Simpson Eason on 2025-05-20
Durham Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: R. Newman on 2025-05-10
Carteret Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: John Petranka, Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2025-05-08
Harnett Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: K. Bischof on 2025-04-24
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Emily Stanley on 2024-09-14
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-09-05
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: John Petranka on 2024-09-04
Orange Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-09-02
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-25
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik, Kenneth Geisert, David Bradley, Julie Tuttle, Patrick Coin, Kaitlyn Elliott, Becky Watkins on 2024-08-17
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: R. Newman on 2024-08-14
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-03
Mitchell Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-03
Mitchell Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-07-21
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Owen McConnell on 2024-07-01
Graham Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik, Stephen Dunn on 2024-06-29
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik, Patrick Coin on 2024-06-22
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: K. Bischof on 2024-06-19
Transylvania Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: R. Newman on 2024-05-30
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-24
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: R. Newman on 2024-04-29
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik, Rich Teper on 2024-04-17
New Hanover Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Avery Young on 2023-09-24
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Metalectra discalisRecorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-08-10
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Metalectra discalisRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-08-10
Wilson Co.
Comment: