''Panthea furcilla'' (tufted white pine caterpillar or eastern panthea) is a species of
moth
Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...
of the family
Noctuidae
The Noctuidae, commonly known as owlet moths, cutworms or armyworms, are a family of moths. They are considered the most controversial family in the superfamily Noctuoidea because many of the clades are constantly changing, along with the other f ...
. It is found across the boreal forest region of Canada west to the Rocky Mountains, and in the eastern parts of the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, from
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
to
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, west to
Texas, north to
Indiana and
Ohio.
It has a
wingspan of 33–50 mm. The moth flies from June to August in a single brood in Canada, but in two or more generations in the southern United States, depending on the location.
The larvae feed on eastern larch, pines, and Spruces.
Subspecies
There are two recognised subspecies:
*''Panthea furcilla australis''
Anweiler, 2009
*''Panthea furcilla furcilla''
(Packard, 1864)[Anweiler, G.G. (2009). Revision of the New World ''Panthea'' Hübner (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) with descriptions of 5 new species and 2 new subspecies. ''Zookeys'' 9: 97-134. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.9.157.]
The supposed species ''P. pallescens'' is today considered a
form
Form is the shape, visual appearance, or configuration of an object. In a wider sense, the form is the way something happens.
Form also refers to:
*Form (document), a document (printed or electronic) with spaces in which to write or enter data
...
of ''P. furcilla'' with no Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic standing.
References
External links
butterfliesandmoths.orgSpecies info at Bug GuideInfo on larval stage
Pantheinae
Moths of North America
Taxa named by Alpheus Spring Packard
Moths described in 1864
{{Pantheinae-stub