confused eusarca

not listed

NNR - Unranked

SNR - Unranked

not listed

Confused eusarca is a common, medium-sized, typical geometer moth. It occurs in the United States and southern Canada east of the Great Plains, and there are several scattered records in the southwest. It also occurs in Mexico and Central America. It is common in Minnesota. Adults are found from June through August in meadows and fields. The larvae feed on the leaves of many species of forbs, especially those in the aster (Asteraceae) family, including on aster, dandelion, and goldenrod, but it has also been reported on clover and knotweed.

Adults have a 1⅛″ to 1⅝″ (29 to 41 mm) wingspan.

The forewings are broad and pale gray or light yellowish-brown with a variable amount of grayish-brown dusting. On some individuals, the entire median area is darker. The antemedial (AM) and postmedial (PM) lines are dark. The AM line is faint and rounded. The PM line is distinct, straight and oblique. It begins at the inner margin about two-thirds distance from the base and fades out or bends inward just before reaching the leading edge (costal margin) near the wingtip. On darker individuals, it is edged with yellow. The discal spot is small, black, and about equidistant between the AM and PM lines.

The hindwings are similar but lack an AM line.

Wingspan: 1⅛″ to 1⅝″ (29 to 41 mm)

Meadows and fields

One generation per year: April to October throughout the range, June through August in Minnesota

Adults rest with their wings held spread out.

Leaves of plants in the aster (Asteraceae) family, including on aster, dandelion, and goldenrod; also clover and knotweed.

Flower nectar

Sources

4, 7, 21, 24, 27, 29, 30, 75, 82, 83.

Common

The genus Eusarca was formerly placed in the tribe Ourapterygini. An analysis of the the subfamily Ennominae (Beljaev, 2008) proposed a new generic composition of the tribe Ennomini based on unique characteristics of the male genitalia and on general morphology. Beljaev proposed the synonymization of the tribes Ennomini and Ourapterygini. A later molecular sampling of the family Geometridae (Sihvonenet al., 2011) suggested that the Ennomini, Ourapterygini, Nephodiini, and other taxa “constitute a well-supported clade.” This was supported by a more recent molecular analysis of New World Geometridae (Brehm et al., 2019). Brehm agreed with the synonymization of Ennomini and Ourapterygini.

Genera formerly in the tribe Ourapterygini are thus transferred to the tribe Ennomini. Ennomini now comprises the highest number of Neotropical genera (more than 100, including undescribed taxa) in a single tribe. The transfer has not been universally accepted.

Confused Eusarca Moth

Location: Magelssen Bluff Park