Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFErebidae Members:
Litoprosopus Members:
17 NC Records

Litoprosopus futilis (Grote & Robinson, 1868) - Palmetto Borer

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: ErebidaeSubfamily: EulepidotinaeTribe: (incertae sedis) Grp. 2P3 Number: 931160.00 MONA Number: 8556.00
Comments: One of five species in this genus that occur in North America north of Mexico (Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010)
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Grote and Robinson (1868)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Wagner et al. (2011)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium-sized, light grayish- to yellowish brown Erebid. The head, body, and wings are concolorous, "greyish fawn" (Grote and Robinson, 1868); transverse lines are darker brown, double, and often incomplete; the orbicular and reniform are also darker brown. The most conspicuous marking are dark eyespots located at the anal angle of the hindwngs. Photographs are acceptable as records for this species where they show the hindwings.
Wingspan: 38 mm (Grote and Robinson, 1868)
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from photos showing hindwings, abdomen, or other specialized views [e.g., frons, palps, antennae, undersides].
Immatures and Development: Larvae are dark brown, striped with narrow yellow, and possess sparse but conspicuous long, pale setae. The head is shiny and deep reddish brown and the pro-thoracic shield and anal plate are shiny black (see Wagner et al., 2011, for illustrations and a detailed description)
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Found mostly along the coast but migrants have been observed in the mountains (J.B.Sullivan, pers. obs.) and can potentially show up anywhere within the state as migrants
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)

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