Moths of North Carolina
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Agrotis Members:
609 NC Records

Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel, 1766) - Ipsilon Dart Moth

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: NoctuidaeSubfamily: NoctuinaeTribe: NoctuiniP3 Number: 933528.00 MONA Number: 10663.00
Comments: One of twenty-three species in this genus that occur in North America north of Mexico (Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010), seven of which have been recorded in North Carolina
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: Our largest Dart, with a small but noticeable blackish claviform spot and an elongated dark wedge following the reniform (Forbes, 1954). This claviform contrasts with the light brown ground color of the lower portion of the wing and is not preceded by a basal dash, as found in Agrotis venerabilis and A. volubilis. The orbicular is rounded but with an elongated posterior extension; both the orbicular and reniform are distinctly darker than the dark shade that extends along the costa to the reniform. A small dark wedge may follow the reniform, similar but smaller than the mark found in A. ipsilon. The hindwings are dirty white but shaded with fuscous along the veins and towards the outer margin. A. venerabilis and A. volubilis are similar but have a basal dash and stronger claviform spots. A. ipsilon always has a dark wedge beyond the reniform that is longer and more pointed than in the other species.
Wingspan: 40 to greater than 50 mm (Forbes, 1954)
Adult Structural Features: Male antennae are pectinate (Forbes, 1954)
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Occurs statewide
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)

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