Ottawa (Dunrobin), ON Canada

23 May 2004   9:52PM EST  (left)
25 May 2004   (moth captured on 23 May 2004)  (right)
Both photos are of the same specimen.

There are a number of superficially similar streaky beige moths, mostly belonging to the subfamily Hadeninae of the noctuids.  When this moth just didn't quite match up with any of the usual suspects, I had to hunt further afield, but eventually found this species in the Acronictinae.  My thanks to Dr. J. Donald Lafontaine of Agriculture Canada for confirming my identification of the specimen illustrated above.

Simyra insularis, also known as Henry's Marsh Moth, has a narrow, whitish forewing, filled with light brown between the veins to give the overall impression of a tan-colored wing.  The antemedial and postmedial lines are not evident, nor is there any evidence of orbicular or reniform spots.  A broad, relatively unmarked whitish streak extends the length of the wing adjacent to the costa.  A darker brown streak extends from the base of the wing to the anal angle, a short distance above the inner margin.  A second brown streak extends most of the length of the center of the wing, to about the midpoint of the outer margin.  A third darker streak terminating at the outer margin near the apex is much shorter, not as much as 1/3 the length of the wing.  The hindwing is white and unmarked.  Covell (1984) indicates a wingspan ranging from 3.5 to 4.0 cm for this species.

According to Covell (1984), the host plants for Simyra insularis include cattails, grasses, poplar, sedges and willow. Handfield (1999) indicates two generations per season for my general area, with adult flight seasons from early May to the end of June, and from the beinning of July into late August.

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