''Acronicta oblinita'', the smeared dagger moth or arioch dagger, is a

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. Its larva, the smartweed caterpillar, has

urticating hairs Urticating hairs or urticating bristles are one of the primary defense mechanisms used by numerous plants, almost all New World tarantulas, and various lepidopteran caterpillars. ''Urtica'' is Latin for "nettle" (stinging nettles are in the genu ...

. The species was first described by

James Edward Smith James Edward Smith may refer to: * James Edward Smith (botanist), English botanist and founder of the Linnean Society * James Edward Smith (murderer), American murderer * James Edward Smith (politician), Canadian businessman and mayor of Toronto * ...

in 1797.

Description

The smeared dagger moth adult has a wingspan of . The forewings have a mottled gray appearance, with orbicular and reniform spots on each dorsal surface that are incompletely outlined and indistinct. Smeared-appearing dark wedge spots are present along the postmedial line with their apices pointed inward. There is a terminal line of dark spots on the forewing. The hindwings are white and also have small dark spots along their terminal line. The larva is a caterpillar up to long that bears numerous tufts of irritating setae on wart-like protuberances along its thoracic and abdominal segments. There are bright yellow blotches in the shape of carets (inverted "V" shapes) between the laterally-positioned spiracles.

Range

The smeared dagger moth is found across Canada as far north as

Lake Athabasca Lake Athabasca (; French: ''lac Athabasca''; from Woods Cree: , "herethere are plants one after another") is located in the north-west corner of Saskatchewan and the north-east corner of Alberta between 58° and 60° N in Canada. The lake ...

. In the United States, the moth is found in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Tho ...

and east of the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...

south to Florida and Texas.

Habitat

Habitats include bogs and coastal marshes in the Pacific Northwest and wetlands, forests and meadows more generally. Individuals have been collected in

boreal forests Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, ...

in Canada.

Life cycle

The smeared dagger moth has one to two generations per year. In the coastal plain of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

, adults can be seen beginning in early March through late June and again from mid-August until early October. Caterpillars may

pupate A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...

within folded leaves of their host plant. Overwintering occurs as pupae.

Host plants

Larval hosts: *''

Salix Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...

'' spp. *''

Alnus Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...

'' spp. *'' Fragaria'' spp. *'' Typha'' spp. *''

Chamaenerion angustifolium ''Chamaenerion angustifolium'' is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant in the willowherb family Onagraceae. It is known in North America as fireweed, in some parts of Canada as great willowherb, in Britain and Ireland as rosebay willowherb. I ...

'' *''

Polygonum ''Polygonum'' is a genus of about 130 species of flowering plant in the buckwheat and knotweed family Polygonaceae. Common names include knotweed and knotgrass (though the common names may refer more broadly to plants from Polygonaceae). In the ...

'' spp.

References

External links

* * Acronicta Moths of North America Taxa named by James Edward Smith Moths described in 1797 {{Acronictinae-stub