Moths of North Carolina
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Acronicta Members:
6 NC Records

Acronicta lanceolaria (Grote, 1875) - Narrow-winged Dagger

Acronicta lanceolaria
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Noctuidae		Subfamily:
Acronictinae		P3 Number:
931491.4		 MONA Number:
9274.00		 Other Common Names:
Lanceolate Dagger, Pointed Dagger Moth
Comments: One of 74 species in this genus found in North America north of Mexico (Schmidt and Anweiler, 2020), 42 of which have been recorded in North Carolina. Acronicta lanceolaria is a member of Species Group V of Forbes (1954), which in North Carolina also includes A. impleta, A. noctivaga, A. impressa, A. longa, A. oblinita, and A. sinescripta.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1954); Schmidt and Anweiler (2020)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Forbes (1954); Wagner et al.(2011); Schmidt and Anweiler (2020)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium sized, pale gray Acronicta. A. lanceolaria is similar to both A. oblinita and A. sinescripta in possessing narrow forewings with little or no dark transverse lines, and whitish hindwings. A. lanceolaria is larger than these other two and has narrower forewings and a more strongly pointed apex. Like A. sinescripta, there may be a dark streak located where the reniform spot usually occurs, but it lacks the basal dash found in that species (Ferguson, 1988). Although markings are usually more reduced in A. lanceolaria than in the other species, Ferguson noted that A. lanceolaria often has a pale, sinuous postmedian that is absent in A. sinescripta and is better defined and dentate in A. oblinita. The row of terminal dark dots characteristic of A. oblinita is missing in A. lanceolaria.
Wingspan: 40-45 mm
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: Larvae are pale green with dark dorsal and lateral stripes (Forbes, 1954, following Dyar; Wagner et al., 2011). The body is covered with pale hair projecting from large, conspicuous warts; secondary hair is lacking (Forbes, 1954). Larvae of oblinita are somewhat similar but not greenish and usually possess yellow lateral blotches.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Appears to be restricted to the Outer Coastal Plain in North Carolina
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Acronicta lanceolaria