morbid owlet

Morbid owlet is a common, medium-sized, litter moth. In the United States it occurs east of the Great Plains and in the Pacific Northwest, with just a few scattered occurrences between. It also occurs across southern Canada, from Nova Scotia to British Columbia.

Adults are active from May to early August, but mostly in June and July. They are found in deciduous woodlands and woodland edges, in moderately moist, boggy, and swampy areas. The larvae feed on the leaves of deciduous trees.

Adults are roughly triangular in shape (deltoid) and ⅝″ to ¾″ (16 to 19 mm) in length. They have a 1⅛″ to 1⅜″ (29 to 35 mm) wingspan. Moth size is often given in terms of forewing length, which in this case is 7⁄16″ to 9⁄16″ (11 to 14 mm).

The finger-like sensory mouthparts (labial palps) are long and blade-like, and they extend forward far beyond the head. On the male, the antennae have a knot-like thickening on the lower half.

The forewings are triangular and uniformly light gray or light brown with brownish lines, spots, and shading. They are crossed with several dark jagged lines. From the wing base to the tip there is a basal line, an antemedial (AM) line, a median line, a postmedial (PM) line, a subterminal (ST) line, and a terminal line. The AM line is smoothly undulating between the veins, and it bends sharply upward then outward at the leading edge (costal margin). The PM line bulges downward in the middle. The median line is reduced to light shading above the PM line on the inner half of the wing, but this is not always visible. The ST line is a row of dark, outward-pointing wedges, each one with pale shading below. The terminal line is a row of dark dashes. The kidney-shaped spot (reniform spot) in the rear half of the median area is small. It is usually the light shading color bordered with the dark line color. Rarely it is entirely black.

The hindwing is paler. The PM line is indistinct, and the ST line is dark with a pale border below.

On the male, the third segment (femur) on the front legs has a conspicuous, fan-like, tuft of hairs.

The former species Chytolita petrealis is smaller, has bolder lines, and a darker reniform spot. It is now considered a synonym of Chytolita morbidalis.

Total length: ⅝″ to ¾″ (16 to 19 mm)

Wingspan: 1⅛″ to 1⅜″ (29 to 35 mm)

Deciduous woodlands and woodland edges; moderately moist, boggy, and swampy areas

One generation per year: June to early August

Adults are active at night and will come to light.

Leaves of deciduous trees

Sources

4, 21, 24, 29, 30, 71, 75, 82, 83.

Genus
GBIF lists this species as Macrochilo morbidalis. In this, they appear to be unique.

Subfamily
Until recently, the subfamily Herminiinae was treated either as the separate family Herminiidae or as a subfamily of Noctuidae. A molecular phylogenetic analysis of the family Erebidae (Zahiri, Reza; et al., 2011) determined that Herminiinae are closely related to Aganainae, which is a subfamily of Erebidae, and Herminiinae was moved as a whole to Erebidae.

Morbid Owlet Moth (Erebidae: Chytolita morbidalis) on Leaf
Carl Barrentine

Greg Watson
6/12/2024

Location: La Crescent, MN (Winona County)