Ottawa (Dunrobin), ON Canada

22 May 2005   9:17PM EST  (top)
5 June 2004   9:16PM EST  (center left)
4 June 2005   12:17AM EST  (center right)
25 July 2000   10:48PM EST  (bottom)

Ecliptopera silaceata albolineata has blackish forewings banded with angular traceries of fine whitish lines.  The blackish ground color sometimes appears somewhat faded to a grayish dark brown.  In lighter specimens, a chain of tone-on-tone bubble-markings may be visible in the median.   Preceding the median, there is a band bounded by white lines, the outermost of which forms an outward point; inside this band, the veins are sometimes evident as yellowish light brown lines crossing the band.  The double postmedial line has two sharp inward points below the midpoint of the wing, that sometimes extend as lines into the median, the lower of which sometimes reaches the outward point of the antemedial line (see center left photo).  In the subterminal area, there is a lighter band defined by whitish zigzag lines and usually crossed by several yellow-brown markings at the veins, especially in the lower half.  The hindwing is grayish tan with traces of lines near the outer margin.  The wingspan ranges from 2.4 to 2.8 cm (Handfield, 1999).

Ecliptopera silaceata albolineata is resembles but is somewhat smaller than Ecliptopera atroliterata, a more southern species that does not occur in my area.

According to Handfield (1999), the larvae of Ecliptopera silaceata albolineata feed on impatiens and willow-herb.  He indicates two generations per year for my general area, with adult flight seasons from the later part of May to the beginning of July, and from the later part of July to early September.

My records to date for Ecliptopera silaceata (each date representing "the night of") are in the table below: