Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFNoctuidae Members: Exyra Members: 53 NC Records

Exyra semicrocea (Guenée, 1852) - Pitcher Plant Mining Moth

Exyra semicroceaExyra semicroceaExyra semicroceaExyra semicrocea
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Noctuidae		Subfamily:
Plusiinae		Tribe:
Plusiini		P3 Number:
931189		 MONA Number:
9024.00		 Other Common Name:
Pitcherplant-mining Looper
Comments: One of three members of this genus, all of which are highly associated with Pitcher Plants in the genus Sarracenia, which occurs only in eastern North America. All three species have been recorded in North Carolina. This genus was formerly placed in the Acontiinae (e.g., Forbes, 1954) but was moved to the Plusiinae by Lafontaine and Poole (1991).
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Jones (1921); Forbes (1954); Lafontaine and Poole (1991)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Jones (1921); Forbes (1954); Lafontaine and Poole (1991); Wagner et al. (2011)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium-small, black-and-yellow Noctuid. The head and front half of the thorax are dark, blackish brown, differing from the crimson-and-yellow found in Exyra fax but very similar to the pattern shown by E. ridingsii. Unlike ridingsii, semicrocea lacks a black antemedian line on the forewings, which are usually divided into a yellow basal area and a blackish terminal area, with the line separating the two zones running fairly straight across the wings. Rarely, all yellow forms occur (see illustrations in Lafontaine and Poole, 1991). Ponometia semiflava is another similar sized moth with yellow basal and black terminal areas on its wings. However that species has an all yellow head and thorax and the line dividing the black and yellow portions of the wings runs at a slant across the wings rather than straight-across. Although there has been some confusion in the past, P. semiflava is not associated with Pitcher Plants, although it also occurs in open Longleaf Pine communities where its host plants -- Goldenaster and other composites -- occur.
Adult Structural Features: Male and female genitalia are illustrated in Lafontaine and Poole (1991).
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: Mature larvae are wine red with white, intersegmental bands. Unlike Exyra fax but similar to E. ridingsii, elongated lappets (pinnacula or warts) occur on the anterior portion of the abdomen that apparently help the larvae from getting stuck in the narrow bottom reaches of the pitcher plant tubes (Jones, 1921). In E. semicrocea, the lateral (= subdorsal) lappets on the thorax are smaller than in ridingsii and are much shorter than those on the abdomen and about the same length of the dorsal warts on the thoracic segments (Lafontaine and Poole, 1991; Wagner et al., 2011). The life history of the Exyra species was well-described by Frank Morton Jones, who studied them initially in Richmond County, NC (Jones, 1904). All life stages are closely associated with their host plants: eggs are laid within the entrance to the pitcher; larvae seal off the entrances to the tubes to create a sealed feeding chamber; both overwintering by larvae and pupation typically occurs within the bases of the tubes; and adults typically rest within the tubes between dispersive flights (see Jones, 1921, for details, including slight differences between species).
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Formerly occurred in the Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain, but appears to have been extirpated from the first two regions; recent records are all from the southern part of the Coastal Plain, including the Fall-line Sandhills.
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Exyra semicroceaAlamance 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.