Moths of North Carolina
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26 NC Records

Crambus multilinellus Fernald, 1887 - Multinellus Grass-veneer Moth


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Taxonomy
Superfamily: Pyraloidea Family: CrambidaeSubfamily: CrambinaeTribe: CrambiniP3 Number: 800952.00 MONA Number: 5364.00
Comments: The genus Crambus includes around 155 species that are distributed globally. Some of the species are significant pests that can cause damage to agricultural crops, lawns and rangelands. This is one of 41 species in this genus that occur in North America north of Mexico (Pohl and Nanz, 2023), and one of fifteen species that occur in North Carolina.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Fernald (1887)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The following is based in part on the original description by Fernald (1887). The palps, head, and thorax are dull orangish-yellow, while the ground of the forewing is a brighter orangish-yellow. The orangish-yellow forewing ground color is divided by a series of narrow, longitudinal, silvery lines to create a multi-striped pattern, with each of the wider orangish-yellow stripes margined with black scales. The most conspicuous mark is a white stripe on the costal half that extends from the wing base to around three-fourths the wing base. It is split along most of its length by a wide orangish-yellow line that is margined with black scales. The extreme edge of the costa is fuscous. The orangish-yellow subterminal line is angled outward and margined with a line of silver scales on the outer edge. The orangish-yellow stripes and silvery lines on the basal two-thirds of the wing run all the way to the subterminal line and fuse with it. Other conspicuous marks include two longitudinal white streaks on the costal half between the tip of the white band and the subterminal line, and a black terminal line on the costal third of the outer margin that is replace by a line of five black dots on the remainder of the outer margin. The fringe has a pale, metallic color, and the hindwing and fringe are white.
Wingspan: 26 mm (Fernald, 1887).
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The larval life history is undocumented.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Crambus multilinellus is primarily found in the southeastern Coastal Plain and adjoining areas of the eastern and southern Piedmont from New Jersey southward to southern Florida, and eastward to Alabama and Mississippi. Isolated records that may reflect vagrants are also known from Minnesota, southern Illinois and Ontario. As of 2023, most of our records are from the Coastal Plain, including the Sandhills and coastal pine forests, with a few others from the eastern Piedmont and northern 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)

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