Moths of North Carolina
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Zanclognatha Members:
144 NC Records

Zanclognatha obscuripennis (Grote, 1872) - Dark Zanclognatha Moth

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: ErebidaeSubfamily: HerminiinaeP3 Number: 930494.00 MONA Number: 8347.00
Comments: One of thirteen species in this genus that occur in North America north of Mexico (Lafontaine and Schmidt, 2010; 2013; Wagner and McCabe, 2011), all of which have been recorded in North Carolina
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: This species and Z. cruralis are very similar in size and markings. The lines in both species are generally strongly marked and even rather than waved. The antemedian is bent just below the costa but otherwise runs fairly straight across the wings; the postmedian is sinuous but not dentate; and the subterminal is straight and typically conspicuous. Forbes (1954) describes obscuripennis as smoky-brown or rarely tinted with red. In this species, the subterminal line is composed of an upper pale line and a lower darker one, with the pale line more prominent and strongly contrasting with the dark ground color. In Z. cruralis, the ground color of the forewings is typically paler, with the dark line of the subterminal the more prominent.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution:
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
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: North Carolina records come from a wide range of forests and shrublands, including maritime forests, peatlands, bottomland hardwoods, longleaf pine flatwoods and savannas, Piedmont barrens, cove forests, and northern hardwoods
Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on dead leaves and detritus but has also been reared on hazel (Wagner et al., 2011) - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Forests and Shrublands
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR S5
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Zanclognatha obscuripennis - Dark Zanclognatha Moth

40 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.

Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2023-09-04
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik, Rich Teper, Becky Watkins on 2023-07-29
Swain Co.
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Recorded by: Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-26
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Tim Foley on 2023-07-22
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: Tim Foley on 2023-07-22
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2023-04-29
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-07-11
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George on 2022-07-04
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: Dean Furbish and Joy Wiggins on 2022-06-06
Wake Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2022-05-29
Yancey Co.
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Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2022-05-23
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2022-05-17
Chatham Co.
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Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2021-09-02
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Stephen Hall on 2021-08-10
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2021-08-06
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Michael P. Morales on 2021-07-10
Cumberland Co.
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Recorded by: Michael P. Morales on 2021-07-10
Cumberland Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Michael P. Morales on 2021-07-10
Cumberland Co.
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Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2021-05-21
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2021-05-20
Wake Co.
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Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2021-04-30
Wake Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Owen McConnell on 2020-09-13
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2020-05-31
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2020-05-16
Guilford Co.
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Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2020-05-03
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Stephen Hall on 2019-06-27
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2019-05-20
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-05-19
Guilford Co.
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Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-05-04
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2019-05-03
Guilford Co.
Comment: