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Ottawa (Dunrobin), ON Canada
1 June 2003 11:16PM EST (top left)
1 June 2003 11:15PM EST (top right)
1 June 2003 11:13PM EST (bottom)
All three photos are of the same specimen.
Trichordestra tacoma is one of four species of Trichordestra
recorded from the Ottawa area (J.D. Lafontaine, pers. comm., 1002), two of which
are illustrated on this website. My thanks to Mr. J.T. Troubridge of Agriculture Canada for confirming my identification of the specimen
illustrated above.
Trichordestra tacoma is a vividly patterned moth, the
rich dark of its forewings contrasting with its pale gray to near white
markings. The antemedial lines are double, filled with pale gray to white,
and rimmed with very dark brown along their medial edges. In the area
preceding the am line, there is a patch of light gray at the inner margin, and
the brown may be somewhat lighter and washed with a reddish color. The
lower half of the median has blotches of pale gray to white, one of which
touches the whitish orbicular spot and to form what appears almost as a band of
white angling toward the anal angle from the costa. The reniform spot is
defined by a pale outline surrounding a reddish center. The area between
the pm line and the whitish subterminal line is mostly filled with pale gray
except for a patch of dark brown at the costa. The white area joins a
white patch at the apex. The terminal area is dark brown. The
hindwing is yellowish, with dark gray-brown shading along the outer margin and a
pale fringe. The specimen picture here is somewhat worn, and part of the
thorax shows shiny red where the hairy-appearing scales have been rubbed off.
According to Handfield (1999), the larvae of Trichordestra
tacoma have been reported to feed on willow, willow herb, chokecherry,
elderberry, blueberry, spiraea, birch, spreading dogbane and other shrubs and
low plants. For my general area, he indicates an adult flight season from before
mid-May to late July.
My sole record to date for Trichordestra tacoma (each date
representing "the night of") is in the table below: |
