Page 634 - The Book of Caterpillars: A Life-Size Guide to Six Hundred Species From Around the World

MOTH CATERPILLARS

FAMILY Noctuidae
DISTRIBUTION Eastern North America, from Ontario to Florida,
west to Montana and Texas
HABITAT Woodlands and forest edges
HOST PLANTS Greenbrier (Smilax spp.)
NOTE Caterpillar that has been described as “fantastically bizarre”
CONSERVATION STATUS Not evaluated, but sometimes common

ADULT WINGSPAN

1⅛–1⅜ in (28–35 mm)
CATERPILLAR LENGTH

1 ⁄ –1⅜ in (30–35 mm)

PHYPROSOPUS CALLITRICHOIDES
CURVE-LINED OWLET MOTH
632
GROTE, 1872

Curve-lined Owlet Moth caterpillars are defended by their
bizarre appearance. With prolegs missing on the third and fourth
abdominal segments and their typical, almost doubled-up pose
on the host plant leaf or stem, they resemble withered leaves and,
to further that mimicry, move from side to side as a leaf would
in a slight breeze. They may be found from late June onward.
When fully grown, the nal instar larva pupates, manufacturing

a cocoon from silked-together stems of the host plant.

The pupa overwinters. There are probably two generations in
northerly areas of the species’ range and possibly three in the
south. Unlike the caterpillar, the adult Curve-lined Owlet moth
is rather dull and unremarkable, although it, too, resembles a

dead leaf. The adults y year-round in the south of the range
and from March to September in northern areas. There are two
species of the genus in North America.

The Curve-lined Owlet Moth caterpillar is
reddish brown with darker markings and a white
area laterally where prolegs clasp the substrate.
The anterior horn is black with a white area,
and the legs may be red or black. The head
is red with black markings.

Actual size