The colors and
pattern of the
Hulst's flower
moth camouflage
it against the
flowers of white
sage, a native
prairie plant, on
which it feeds and
lays its eggs.
Common
pinkbands fly
from May through
September with
at least three
generations per
year.
The white-speck
moth has a single
white dot (not clearly
visible in the photo)
toward the rear of
each wing. They are
also called armyworm
moths because their
caterpillars move in
lines as a massive
group similar to an army
on the march.
Caterpillars of the pink-washed aristotelia
feed on native legumes including
prairie-clovers, prairie bush-clover and
tick-clovers. The moth was the smallest
captured by Brogie on this night last
August, measuring just 3/16th of an inch
in length.
The dark-spotted palthis
moth has tufted, up-turned
labial palps – the hairy
or scaly moustache-like
projections on each side
of the proboscis that have
a sensory function.
The caterpillars of the clover
hayworm moth infest hay
stacks, covering the hay
with white silk, eating dry
clover leaves, and causing
damage.
The cottonwood dagger
inhabits wooded floodplains
where its caterpillars
feed on members of the
poplar family, including
cottonwoods, willows and
aspen.
The pepper-and-salt geometer has
light and dark forms. The dark forms
predominate in areas where industrial
air pollution has darkened trees. The
caterpillars of geometer moths, also called
loopers, are inchworms that loop along
by drawing the hind end up to the front,
then extending the front and repeating the
process.
The caterpillars of the
Montana six-plume
moth feed solely on
snowberries, native
shrubs, probably as
leaf or flower miners.
The moth's wings are
deeply cleft to the
basal forks of the veins
forming six plume-like
segments.
MARCH 2018 • NEBRASKAland 25
