Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFNolidae Members: Meganola Members: 62 NC Records

Meganola spodia Franclemont, 1985 - Ashy Meganola

Meganola spodiaMeganola spodiaMeganola spodia
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Nolidae		Subfamily:
Nolinae		P3 Number:
931123		 MONA Number:
8983.20		 Other Common Name:
Once-charred Punkie
Comments: One of eight described species in this genus that occur in North America, three of which are found in North Carolina.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: All three of our Meganola species are relatively small gray moths with similar markings. Compared to both Meganola phylla and minuscula, both of which are whitish or silvery gray, M. spodia has a browner tint, which is particularly evident on the darker hindwings (Franclemont, 1985). As in M. minuscula but not phylla, the lines are strongly marked, with the postmedian double rather than single. The mid-costal spot is rectangular in spodia rather than triangular, as it is in the other two species (Franclemont, 1985).
Forewing Length: 9-11 mm, males; 12-13 mm, females (Franclemont, 1985)
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.
Meganola spodiaAlamance 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 Hanover 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 from a wide range of oak-containing habitats, including maritime forests, bottomlands, sand ridge scrub, mesic slopes, and dry ridges.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on oaks, including red and white oaks (Wagner et al., 2011). Reported hosts include White Oak (Quercus alba), Chestnut Oak (Q. montana), Northern Red Oak (Q. rubra), Post Oak (Q. stellata), and Black Oak (Q. velutina) (Robinson et al., 2010; Wagner et al., 2011). We do not have any feeding records in North Carolina. - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Oak-Hickory Forests
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 SNR [S3S4]
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Meganola spodia - Ashy Meganola

Photos: 20
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik, Jim Petranka on 2025-05-24
Richmond Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-05-24
Richmond Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Jim Petranka, John Petranka and Becky Elkin, David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-05-09
Cumberland Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Jim Petranka, John Petranka and Becky Elkin, David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-05-09
Cumberland Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George on 2025-05-09
Cumberland Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-05-09
Cumberland Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Jim Petranka, John Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2025-05-08
Harnett Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Stephen Hall, David George, and David Bradley on 2024-05-07
Durham Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Stephen Hall on 2023-05-23
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2023-05-17
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2023-05-12
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2023-05-12
Durham Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2022-05-29
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Darryl Willis on 2020-07-16
Cabarrus Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2020-06-09
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2019-05-20
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-05-02
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Darryl Willis on 2015-05-12
Cabarrus Co.
Comment:
Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Jackie Nelson / Doug Blatny on 2013-07-29
Ashe Co.
Comment: 		Meganola spodia
Recorded by: Lenny Lampel on 2013-05-30
Mecklenburg Co.
Comment: