Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFTortricidae Members:
Acleris Members:
2 NC Records

Acleris forbesana (McDunnough, 1934) - Forbes' Acleris Moth

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Tortricoidea Family: TortricidaeSubfamily: TortricinaeTribe: TortriciniP3 Number: 620025.00 MONA Number: 3525.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: Acleris forbesana is distinctive in having a dark triangular patch midway along the costa, and a forewing ground that is dirty white with diffuse blotches that resemble smudged ink. The palps and head are white and the thorax white with a curved line of scales near the base and a spot of dark scales near the distal tip. The forewing ground is white, but overlain with dark gray scales that provide a dirty grayish-white appearance. These are arranged into large, diffuse blotches that are most prevalent on the apical half of the wing. A blackish costal triangle is centered just beyond the middle of the wing. It terminated near the center of the wing and has a smoothly rounded end. A small patch or two of raised dark scales are often evident near the center of the wing at around one-fourth the wing length. The fringe is dirty white, while the hindwing is pale gray to silvery gray with a concolorous fringe.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Acleris forbesana is found mostly at northern latitudes, with disjunct groups found in both western and eastern North America. Populations in the West occur from central California northward through the Pacific Northwest to British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan. In the East the range includes portions of southern Canada (Manitoba; Ontario; Quebec; Newfoundland; New Brunswick) and the northern U.S. from Maine to Minnesota, and southward to northern Illinois, Michigan, New York and Massachusetts. A southern disjunct group is also present in the southern Appalachians in eastern Tennessee and North Carolina. As of 2024, our very limited records are all from high-elevation sites in the southern Blue Ridge.
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Flight Comments: The adults have been observed from March through November in different areas of the range, with many populations probably having two generations per year. As of 2024, our very limited records are from mid- to late-July.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats:
Larval Host Plants: The larvae reportedly feed on dogwoods (Brown et al., 2008; Robinson et al., 2010; Lam et al., 2011). The reported hosts include Cornus californica, C. sericea subsp. occidentalis and C. sericea subsp. stolonifera. We do not have any feeding records in North Carolina. - View
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks:
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Acleris forbesana - Forbes' Acleris Moth

Photos: 2

Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-31
Macon Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Michael Pogue on 2004-07-20
Haywood Co.
Comment: BOLD specimen: CreativeCommons Attribution; CBG Photography Group, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics.