Moths of North Carolina
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Zale Members:
53 NC Records

Zale undularis (Drury, 1773) - Black Zale


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Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: ErebidaeSubfamily: ErebinaeTribe: OphiusiniP3 Number: 931030.00 MONA Number: 8695.00
Comments: One of 39 species in this genus that occur north of Mexico, 23 of which have been recorded in North Carolina
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1954)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Forbes (1954); Wagner et al. (2011)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A dark umber to coal black Zale with a distinctive yellowish-brown patch located on the outside of the postmedian in a bight opposite the cell. Aeruginosa is similar but lacks the pale patch and typically has a frosting of green scales that are missing in undularis. Pseudanthracia coracias is similar but smaller, lacking the pale patch beyond the postmedian but possessing whitish scales -- absent in undularis -- that partially outline the reniform.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: Larvae are a mottled brown to gray; the head has a distinctively reticulate pattern marked with white v's (see Forbes, 1954, for a detailed description).
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: May be found throughout the mountains, where Black Locust is native, but probably occurs at only scattered locations in the Piedmont; and is likely absent from the Coastal Plain
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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