Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFErebidae Members: Catocala Members: 51 NC Records

Catocala clintonii Grote, 1864 - Clinton's Underwing

Catocala clintoniiCatocala clintoniiCatocala clintoniiCatocala clintonii
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Erebidae		Subfamily:
Erebinae		Tribe:
Catocalini		P3 Number:
930853		 MONA Number:
8872.00		 MONA Synonym:
Catocala clintoni
Comments: One of 103 species in this genus that occur in North America (Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010, 2015), 67 of which have been recorded in North Carolina. Included by Barnes and McDunnough (1918) in their Group XVII (also adopted by Forbes, 1954), which feed mainly on members of the Rosaceae. Kons and Borth, 2015b), however, exclude clintonii from this group, presumably based on absence of certain male genitalic features that they regard as synapomorphies of Group XVII. Both Barnes and McDunnough (1918) and Forbes (1954) also expressed doubts about including it in this group.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Barnes and McDunnough (1918); Forbes (1954); Sargent (1976)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium-sized Underwing with gray forewings and yellow-and-black banded hindwings. The forewing is variably shaded with gray, the costa usually paler than the rest of the wing and the area on the outside of the reniform darker (Forbes, 1954). A long, narrow basal dash is characteristic, usually reaching to the antemedian or crossing it; this dash is typically not forked, but may have a small line joining it on the upper side. The antemedian and postmedian are both well-marked and single, although there may be a pale line edging the antemedian on its inner side. The reniform is gray but surrounded by a whitish shade; the subreniform is large, pale, and closed. The inner loop of the hindwing ends abruptly at the inner margin, without the strongly dark connection to the base typical of the other Rosaceae-feeding Underwings (Group XVII). Catocala praeclara has a similar forewing pattern but is smaller, usually less grayish, and has a shorter, more wedge-shaped basal dash, lacking the lower projection along the anal vein.
Wingspan: 50-55 mm (Forbes, 1954; 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.
Catocala clintoniiAlamance 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: Our records come mainly from low-lying areas near streams or other wet sites. Some records from the Mountains come from cove forests or ridges.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae are oligophagous, feeding on a number of genera in the Rosaceae. Wagner et al. (2011) list apple (Malus), cherry and plum (Prunus spp. - especially Chickasaw Plum), and hawthorn (Crataegus). We do not have any feeding records in North Carolina. - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Rosaceous Thickets
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G4 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 clintonii - Clinton's Underwing

Photos: 23
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-25
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-06-25
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-06-14
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-06-14
Madison Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-05-31
Brunswick Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-05-31
Brunswick Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Emily Stanley on 2024-06-07
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2023-07-27
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-07-06
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2023-06-24
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Richard Teper on 2022-06-16
Macon Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Richard Teper on 2022-05-31
Moore Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Mark Shields on 2021-05-11
Onslow Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2020-06-30
Madison Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Mark Shields on 2020-05-23
Onslow Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: David L. Heavner on 2019-06-20
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: David L. Heavner on 2019-06-20
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Chris Talkington on 2015-06-12
Mecklenburg Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Darryl Willis on 2014-05-22
Cabarrus Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: Taylor Piephoff on 2010-06-04
Mecklenburg Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: SPH on 2009-06-02
Moore Co.
Comment: 		Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: SPH on 2009-06-02
Moore Co.
Comment:
Catocala clintoniiRecorded by: SPH on 2009-05-21
Scotland Co.
Comment: