Moths of North Carolina
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
 Family (Alpha):
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Catocala Members:
98 NC Records

Catocala amica (Hübner, 1818) - Girlfriend Underwing

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: ErebidaeSubfamily: ErebinaeTribe: CatocaliniP3 Number: 930859.00 MONA Number: 8878.00
Comments: One of 103 species in this genus that occur in North America (Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010, 2015), 67 of which have been recorded in North Carolina. Amica was included by Barnes and McDunnough (1918) in their Group XX (also adopted by Forbes, 1954), which feed on Oaks. This group originally also included jair, with lineella now added as a separate species. At least one undescribed species may eventually be added.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF                                                                                 
Wingspan: 35-40 mm (Sargent, 1976)
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: Found mainly in xeric sites in the Coastal Plain, including maritime forests and sand ridges. In the Piedmont and Mountains, however, it is associated with wet-to-mesic habitats, including alluvial forests, cove forests, and high elevation forests
Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on oaks, including White Oak, Live Oak, Bear Oak and others (Wagner et al., 2011)
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Oak-Hickory Forests
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 S4
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Catocala amica - Girlfriend Underwing

Photos: 22

Recorded by: R. Newman on 2022-06-07
Carteret Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: R. Newman on 2021-06-20
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2020-09-05
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2020-08-28
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2020-08-28
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Darryl Willis on 2020-07-22
Cabarrus Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2020-06-27
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-07-11
Guilford Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-07-11
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-06-21
Guilford Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-06-15
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-06-15
Guilford Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-06-15
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Alicia Jackson on 2019-06-03
New Hanover Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-06-02
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-06-02
Guilford Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2018-06-15
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2018-06-15
Guilford Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2018-06-15
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Steve Hall and Bo Sullivan on 2016-08-02
Ashe Co.
Comment: Form curvifascia.
Recorded by: Paul Scharf on 2011-07-11
Warren Co.
Comment: Typical form.		Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2008-06-29
Bladen Co.
Comment: Form curvifascia. Several were seen along the edge of a river floodplain.