Moths of North Carolina
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4 NC Records

Clepsis clemensiana (Fernald, 1879) - Clemens' Clepsis Moth

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Tortricoidea Family: TortricidaeSubfamily: TortricinaeTribe: ArchipiniP3 Number: 620360.00 MONA Number: 3684.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Freeman (1958)Technical Description, Immature Stages: MacKay (1962)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The following description is primarily based on that of Freeman (1958). The head, palps, and thorax vary from light ocherous to tawny. The forewing is entirely shining straw yellow and unmarked, and the veins are often outlined with slightly darker scales. The hindwing and fringe are white, and fuscous scales are sometimes present in the anal region. The males have a well-developed costal fold that has elongate, whitish scales. The forewing is long and narrow, and the apex is nearly falcate in some individuals.
Wingspan: 16-20 mm (Forbes, 1923).
Forewing Length: 9.5-11.5 mm (Gilligan and Epstein, 2014; TortID).
Adult Structural Features: Freeman (1958) and Gilligan and Epstein (2014; TortID) have images and descriptions of the male and female genitalia.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The larvae are known to feed on grasses and forbs, but details of the larval life history and ecology are not available. The late instar larvae are approximately 10 mm long and have a yellowish brown head and prothoracic shield. The pinacula are large and conspicuous, and an anal comb is present (Gilligan and Epstein, 2014; TortID).
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable only through rearing to adulthood.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Clepsis clemensiana has northern affinities and is broadly distributed across the northern US, Alaska, and southern Canada from the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and British Columbia eastward to Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. In the conterminous United States the range extends from Maine westward across the northern tier of states to Washington, and southward to northern California, northern New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and North Carolina. Populations are generally absent from the arid, non-forested regions of the West. As of 2023 we have only two site records and both are from Ashe Co. where there appears to be a disjunct population from the main range farther north.
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 found from March through October in different areas of the range, with June through August typically being the primary flight season. Local populations have one or two generations per year depending on the location. As of 2023, our four records from Ashe County are all from July.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Populations are generally found in open habitats that support grasses and forbs, including old fields, mowed pastures, roadways, fens, and prairies. Our one site record as of 2023 is from an infrequently mowed meadow.
Larval Host Plants: The larvae are polyphagous and feed on a variety of herbaceous plants and grasses, with grasses suspected of being the most important host group (Putman, 1935; Powell, 1964; Freeman, 1958; Powell and Opler, 2009; Gilligan and Epstein, 2014). The reported hosts include dogbane (Apocynum), Common Timothy (Phleum pratense), goldenrods (Solidago), New England Aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angeliae) and other asters, and Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum). - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights.
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR [S1-S2]
State Protection:
Comments: This species is rare in North Carolina, with a single known population in Ashe County that appears to be a southern disjunct from the main range that occurs farther north.

 Photo Gallery for Clepsis clemensiana - Clemens' Clepsis Moth

Photos: 1

Recorded by: Ed Corey on 2018-07-17
Ashe Co.
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