Lithomoia germana
Encyclopedia
The American Brindle is a moth
of the Noctuidae
family. It is found from Alaska
to Newfoundland
south to Pennsylvania
, Colorado
and Oregon
.
The wingspan
is about 40 mm. The forewings are light gray and streaked and shaded with shades of gray and brown. The hindwings are gray-beige and shaded darker towards the outer margin. At rest, adults mostly roll their wings around their body and thus take on the appearance of a small twig. Adults are on wing from mid-April to early May and again from mid-August to the beginning of October.
The larvae feed on various trees and woody shrubs of the Salicaceae
and Betulaceae
families. Adults feed on nectar of goldenrod flowers.
It hibernates as an adult.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Noctuidae
Noctuidae
The Noctuidae or owlet moths are a family of robustly-built moths that includes more than 35,000 known species out of possibly 100,000 total, in more than 4,200 genera. They constitute the largest family in the Lepidoptera....
family. It is found from Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
to Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
south to Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
and Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is about 40 mm. The forewings are light gray and streaked and shaded with shades of gray and brown. The hindwings are gray-beige and shaded darker towards the outer margin. At rest, adults mostly roll their wings around their body and thus take on the appearance of a small twig. Adults are on wing from mid-April to early May and again from mid-August to the beginning of October.
The larvae feed on various trees and woody shrubs of the Salicaceae
Salicaceae
Salicaceae are a family of flowering plants. Recent genetic studies summarized by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group has greatly expanded the circumscription of the family to contain 55 genera....
and Betulaceae
Betulaceae
Betulaceae, or the Birch Family, includes six genera of deciduous nut-bearing trees and shrubs, including the birches, alders, hazels, hornbeams and hop-hornbeams, numbering about 130 species...
families. Adults feed on nectar of goldenrod flowers.
It hibernates as an adult.
Subspecies
- Lithomoia germana germana
- Lithomoia germana morrisoni Barnes & Benjamin, 1922 (Alaska)
- Lithomoia germana albertae McDunnough, 1938 (Alberta)