Moths of North Carolina
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Spodoptera Members:
5 NC Records

Spodoptera latifascia (Walker, 1856) - Velvet Armyworm Moth

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: NoctuidaeSubfamily: NoctuinaeTribe: ProdeniiniP3 Number: 932220.00 MONA Number: 9670.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: According to Pogue (2002), latifascia can easily be confused with S. ornithogalli but the spots of adterminal line are spindle-shaped in S. latifascia and crescent-shaped in S. ornithogalli. The veins of the hindwing are white in latifascia but are shaded with brown in ornithogalli.
Forewing Length: 15-20 mm, males; 16-20 mm, females (Todd and Poole, 1980). Length to width ratio of forewing greater than 2.5 in latifacscia but
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.
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Wagner et al. (2011) list croplands, waste areas, and other open lands as habitats used by this species. Our records come open wetlands, sand ridges, and residential areas, all of which may represent migrants from the south.
Larval Host Plants: Like other members of this genus, larvae of this species are broadly polyphagous (Wagner et al., 2011) - View
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR SNA
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Spodoptera latifascia - Velvet Armyworm Moth

Photos: 4

Recorded by: Darryl Willis on 2023-07-28
Cabarrus Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2019-05-29
Mecklenburg Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2019-05-29
Mecklenburg Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Darryl Willis on 2018-07-24
Cabarrus Co.
Comment: