Moths of North Carolina

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View PDF	Erebidae Members:	Catocala Members:	85 NC Records

Catocala gracilis Edwards, 1864 - Graceful Underwing

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Taxonomy

Superfamily:
Noctuoidea

Family:
Erebidae

Subfamily:
Erebinae

Tribe:
Catocalini

P3 Number:
930833

MONA Number:
8847.00

Comments: One of 103 species in this genus that occur in North America (Gall and Hawks, 2010; Kons and Borth, 2015a,b), 67 of which have been recorded in North Carolina. Barnes and MacDunnough (1918) and Forbes (1954) placed this species in Group XV, which also includes C. sordida and andromedae, all associated with heaths.

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984)

Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD

Adult Markings: The forewings are usually pale gray but with the inner margin often shaded with black. In form lemmeri, the thorax -- which is normally gray -- as well as the inner margin of the forewing are almost entirely black (Forbes, 1954; Sargent, 1976). A dark basal dash also exists in both sexes. The antemedian and postmedian lines are also black and fine, but sometimes broken or obsolete. The hindwing is marked with orange and black bands. In gracilis, the postmedian black band is strongly recurved and typically end abruptly before the inner margin. Catocala sordida is very similar, but lacks the black basal dash and is usually not so darkly shaded with black. Melanic specimens of these two species may be very difficult to distinguish but if a distinct basal dash is present, then gracilis is the most likely (Sargent, 1976). The hindwings of the two species are also similar but the postmedian black band continues somewhat diffusely along the inner margin towards the base.

Wingspan: 40-45 mm (Sargent, 1976)

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.


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: A number of our records come from dry, rocky habitats in the Mountains and Piedmont monadnocks but others come from low-lying flatwoods, pocosins, and shrubby borders of depression ponds.

Larval Host Plants: Larvae are oligophagous, feeding on Vaccinium (particularly Highbush Blueberry) and Swamp Fetterbush (Eubotrys racemosa) (Wagner et al., 2011). In North Carolina, J.B. Sullivan reared a larva from blueberry. - View

Wikipedia

See also Habitat Account for General Upland Heath Thickets

Status in North Carolina

Natural Heritage Program Status:

Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 SNR [S4S5]

State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.

Comments:

Photo Gallery for Catocala gracilis - Graceful Underwing

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

	Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George, Larry Chen, Sarah Toner, Joye Zhou on 2025-06-20 Richmond Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George, Larry Chen, Sarah Toner, Joye Zhou on 2025-06-20 Richmond Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-18 Brunswick Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-18 Brunswick Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-05-31 Brunswick Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-05-31 Brunswick Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-08-29 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-08-29 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-08-27 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-08-27 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2024-06-15 Scotland Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2024-06-15 Scotland Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-06-13 Wilson Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-06-11 Wilson Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-06-11 Wilson Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-06-11 Wilson Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-05-28 Wilson Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-05-28 Wilson Co. Comment: Form lemmeri
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2023-08-23 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2023-08-23 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2023-08-23 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik, Rich Teper, Becky Watkins on 2023-07-30 Swain Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik, Rich Teper, Erich Hofmann, Jesse Anderson on 2023-05-22 New Hanover Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Steve Hall and Bo Sullivan on 2021-06-07 Moore Co. Comment: Form lemmeri
	Recorded by: J.B. Sullivan on 2021-04-24 Carteret Co. Comment: Larva on Highbush Blueberry		Recorded by: J.B. Sullivan on 2021-04-24 Carteret Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: J.B. Sullivan on 2021-04-24 Carteret Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Mark Shields on 2020-06-11 Onslow Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2019-07-19 Madison Co. Comment: form lemmeri.		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2019-07-19 Madison Co. Comment: