The BioFiles - Bill Hubick

    Black-spotted Prominent Moth (Dasylophia anguina)

    Source: Wikipedia

    Black-spotted prominent
    caterpillar
    Scientific classification Edit this classification
    Domain: Eukaryota
    Kingdom: Animalia
    Phylum: Arthropoda
    Class: Insecta
    Order: Lepidoptera
    Superfamily: Noctuoidea
    Family: Notodontidae
    Genus: Dasylophia
    Species:
    D. anguina
    Binomial name
    Dasylophia anguina
    (J.E. Smith, 1797)
    Synonyms
    • Phalaena anguina Smith, 1797
    • Dasylophia cucullifera (Herrich-Schäffer, 1855)
    • Dasylophia punctata (Walker, 1865)
    • Dasylophia signata (Walker, 1865)
    • Dasylophia cana (Walker, 1869)
    • Dasylophia punctagorda Slosson, 1892

    Dasylophia anguina, the black-spotted prominent, is a species of moth in the family Notodontidae. It is native to North America.

    Description

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    Black-spotted Prominent (Dasylophia anguina) caterpillar on Wisteria
    Black-spotted Prominent (Dasylophia anguina) caterpillar on Wisteria

    The black-spotted prominent has a wingspan of 3 to 4.1 cm (1.2 to 1.6 in). It is sexually dimorphic, with the male having black streaks in the basal and median areas of the fore wing, and the female having a large yellow-brown patch in the basal area of the fore wing. The hind wing is white in the male, and gray in the female. Both sexes have the fore wing postmedian line being sharp and rounded. There are black spots in the lower marginal area of the fore wing.[1]

    Range and distribution

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    The black-spotted prominent is found from Manitoba to southern Quebec to southern Florida and to northeastern Texas.[2]

    Habitat

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    The black-spotted prominent can be found in habitats such as fields, woodlands, and barrens.[2]

    Flight period

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    The black-spotted prominent flies from April to September,[1] and the caterpillars can be found from May to November.[2] There is one brood in the northern part of its range, and two or more in the southern part of its range.[2]

    References

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    1. ^ a b "Black-Spotted Prominent". Butterflies and Moths of North America. Archived from the original on 14 April 2013. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
    2. ^ a b c d Wagner, David L. (2005). Caterpillars of Eastern North America. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. p. 315. ISBN 0-691-12144-3.