Moths of North Carolina
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
 Family (Alpha):
« Home »
View PDFNoctuidae Members: Ctenoplusia Members: 155 NC Records

Ctenoplusia oxygramma (Geyer, 1832) - Sharp-stigma Looper Moth

Ctenoplusia oxygramma
view caption 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaCtenoplusia oxygramma
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Noctuidae		Subfamily:
Plusiinae		Tribe:
Argyrogrammatini		P3 Number:
931169		 MONA Number:
8889.00
Comments: The only member of its genus found in the New World (Lafontaine and Poole, 1991).
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984; as Agrapha oxygramma); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1954, as Plusia oxygramma); Lafontaine and Poole (1991)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium-sized, dull, dark gray Looper with a constrastingly pale, elongated stigma. Lines and markings are obscure but the long, knife-shaped stigma, joined at the base by the trapezoidal orbicular, is an easy field mark for this species. Hind wings are fuscous.
Wingspan: 35-40 mm (Forbes, 1954)
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from close inspection of specimens or by DNA analysis.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution:
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaAlamance 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.
Immature 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: immatures.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Our records come from a variety of open habitats from across the state, including herbaceous openings in the Mountains to maritime dunes on the barrier islands
Larval Host Plants: Larvae are polyphagous on herbaceous plants. Crumb (1956) lists asters, goldenrod, horseweed, and tobacco (Wagner et al., 2011). In North Carolina, we have reared it from goldenrod. - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Successional Fields and Forblands
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 Ctenoplusia oxygramma - Sharp-stigma Looper Moth

 126 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-09-01
Rowan Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: David George, Kevin Bischof, Rich Teper, Patrick Coin on 2025-08-15
Transylvania Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Jim Petranka, Becky Elkin and Marilyn Westphal. on 2025-08-09
Henderson Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2025-08-04
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Emily Stanley on 2025-08-02
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-07-20
Moore Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: K. Bischof on 2025-07-19
Transylvania Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Chuck Smith on 2024-11-01
Davidson Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George on 2024-09-22
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-09-19
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-09-19
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: David George on 2024-09-09
Durham Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: David George on 2024-09-08
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: David George on 2024-09-08
Durham Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Terrell Tucker on 2024-09-05
Moore Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George on 2024-09-05
Orange Co.
Comment: Reared on Solidago. Adult 2024-09-22
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George on 2024-09-05
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-25
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-25
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: K. Bischof on 2024-08-05
Transylvania Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-04
Mitchell Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-04
Mitchell Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-07-29
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-07-28
Rowan Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-07-26
Rowan Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: R. Newman on 2024-03-14
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Simpson Eason on 2023-11-17
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-11-09
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-11-09
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Ctenoplusia oxygrammaRecorded by: Owen McConnell on 2023-10-28
Graham Co.
Comment: