Moths of North Carolina
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
 Family (Alpha):
« Home »
View PDFNoctuidae Members: Psychomorpha Members: 14 NC Records

Psychomorpha epimenis (Drury, 1782) - Grapevine Epimenis

Psychomorpha epimenis
view caption 		Psychomorpha epimenisPsychomorpha epimenis
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Noctuidae		Subfamily:
Agaristinae		P3 Number:
931975		 MONA Number:
9309.00
Comments: A North American genus with a single species
Species Status: Specimens from North Carolina have not been barcoded but sequences from Florida to Connecticut are very similar indicating that the species is likely to be homogeneous
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1954)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Forbes (1954); Wagner et al. (2011)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: A medium-sized, strikingly marked Noctuid. The white windows on the forewing and red windows on the hindwing are unique. Sexes are similar.
Wingspan: 22-27 mm (Forbes, 1954)
Adult Structural Features: Male and female genitalia have good characters and are diagnostic. Forbes (1954) describes unique characters in the tympanum.
Structural photos
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The brightly colored black and white caterpillar with orange patches is similar to the caterpillars of Eudryas species but much smaller.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Probably found throughout the state but we currently only have records from the Mountains and Outer Coastal Plain
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Psychomorpha epimenisAlamance 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.
Flight Comments: Our records come primarily from March and April, but there is one historic record from August from the Great Smoky Mountains
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: One of our records comes from maritime scrub habitats on a barrier island, where grapes are abundant. Habitats at the other sites for which we have records are less clear but appear to include both upland and lowland forests.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on grapes (Vitis), although we know of no records of attacks to domestic varieties (Wagner et al., 2011). Charley Eiseman also has a record (BugGuide, 2019) for a larva on Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) in Massachusetts. - View
Observation Methods: Like many other agaristine noctuids, the adults are day flyers. Look for adults early in the spring when blues and orange tip butterflies are on the wing. Our only captures are from plum blossoms but adults are said to puddle. We have never seen adults in light traps or at lighted sheets. Wagner et al (2011) suggest looking for larvae in folded-over leaf patches about 6-7 leaves back from the growing tip. The caterpillar seems to feed within this folded shelter. Searches should be made along the edges of fields and woodlands.
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Vitaceous Tangles
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status: [W-PK]
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 SNR [S2S3]
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments: More diurnal surveys need to be conducted during the early spring before we can be sure how common and widely distributed this species is in North Carolina.

 Photo Gallery for Psychomorpha epimenis - Grapevine Epimenis

Photos: 10
Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2022-04-20
Mecklenburg Co.
Comment: 		Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2022-04-20
Mecklenburg Co.
Comment:
Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: R. Newman on 2021-04-14
Carteret Co.
Comment: 		Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Vin Stanton on 2018-04-18
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Vin Stanton on 2018-03-28
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2017-03-29
McDowell Co.
Comment:
Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Hunter Phillips on 2016-03-30
Onslow Co.
Comment: 		Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Salman Abdulali on 2013-04-09
Madison Co.
Comment:
Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Darryl Willis on 2012-03-20
Cabarrus Co.
Comment: 		Psychomorpha epimenisRecorded by: Newman, Randy on 2004-03-29
Carteret Co.
Comment: