Cerastis tenebrifera (Walker) Reddish Speckled Dart

Pogue, Michael G., 2006, The Noctuinae (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, U. S. A., Zootaxa 1215 (1), pp. 1-95 : 45-46

13. Cerastis tenebrifera (Walker) Reddish Speckled Dart

( Figs. 48–49, Map 31)

Identification: Forewing length 15.0–18.0 mm. Male antennae are bipectinate. Forewing is dark reddish brown and concolorous with head and thorax, prothorax with a thin apical border of white. Orbicular and reniform spots are white with patches of white above both spots on costa. Antemedial and postmedial lines and area between them are slightly darker than ground color. Subterminal and terminal lines are thin and wavy. Hindwing is pale gray with a faint discal spot.

Flight period: Collected from mid­March through April.

Collected localities: North Carolina: Haywood Co., Mount Sterling Trail, Purchase Knob ; Swain Co. , Big Cove Road site b, Big Cove Road site p . Tennessee: Cocke Co., Cosby Ranger Station; Sevier Co. , Park Headquarters. (10 specimens)

General distribution: This species is distributed in eastern North America from Newfoundland to southern Ontario, south to North Carolina, and east to Mississippi, eastern Texas, and eastern Kansas ( Lafontaine 1998) .

MAP 31. Collecting localities of Cerastis tenebrifera .

Larval hosts: Larvae accepted lettuce ( Lactuca sp. Asteraceae ), linden ( Tilia x vulgaris Hayne (pro. sp.) [cordata x platyphyllos] Tiliaceae ), grape (Vitus sp., Vitaceae ), and common dandelion ( Taraxacum officinale G. H. Weber ex Wiggers , Asteraceae ) in captivity ( Crumb 1956). McCabe (1991) reared larvae on common dandelion ( Taraxacum officinale G. H. Weber ex Wiggers , Asteraceae ), raspberry ( Rubus idaeus L., Rosaceae ), meadow willow ( Salix petiolaris Sm. , Salicaceae ), chokecherry ( Prunus virginiana L., Rosaceae ), and paper birch ( Betula papyrifera Marsh. , Betulaceae ).