Catocala piatrix

Penitent Underwing
Catocala piatrix dionyza imago
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Erebidae (but see text)
Tribe: Catocalini (but see text)
Genus: Catocala
Species: C. piatrix
Binomial name
Catocala piatrix
Grote, 1864
Caterpillar

The Penitent Underwing (Catocala piatrix) is a Erebidae moth from North America. It is placed in subfamily Catocalinae, either of the family Noctuidae, or – if the Noctuidae are circumscribed more strictly – of family Erebidae. Within the Catocalinae, it belongs to tribe Catocalini and – if the Noctuidae are circumscribed widely – subtribe Catocalina.

The wingspan of adults is about 70–80 mm. The forewings are dark brownish gray, darkest at the base, and with an oblique lighter band extending from the midwing to the leading edge near the wing base. The hindwings are yellow-orange with dark hairs at the base (though these are not especially prominent) and two concentric black bands. The yellow zone separating the black bands is wide, with a relatively smooth edge; the outer edge of the hindwings is light yellow with some black bars extending from the outer band. As typical for hickory-feeding Catocala, both foreleg and hindleg tibiae of this species are spiny, and the tarsi carry four rows of irregular rows of spines each.[1]

The moths fly from July to November depending on the location. The larvae feed on ash, butternut, hickory, pecan, persimmon, and walnut trees.

Subspecies are:[2]

The nominate subspecies can be found in the eastern part of the United States, and the subspecies Catocala piatrix dionyza can be found in Arizona.[2]

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Nelson & Loy (1983)
  2. 1 2 See references in Savela (2011)

References

Media related to Catocala piatrix at Wikimedia Commons

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