Kristi remarked that this is “One of the more pretty dart moths, and this was an especially bright individual.” Pretty, indeed. Flying from late summer through fall in a variety of dry habitats, these nocturnal moths are reportedly common in western Montana and will come to lights. While the caterpillars’ food plants are unknown, they are probably a soil-surface feeding cutworm that feeds on herbaceous vegetation (based on related species). This species ranges from British Columbia to Quebec and Maine, south in the east to New England and Illinois, south in the west to California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.
Size: Forewing length 14-18 mm
Photo by: Kristi DuBois on 8/28/21 in Missoula, MT