Catocala amestris

Three-staff underwing
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Superfamily:	Noctuoidea
Family:	Erebidae
Genus:	Catocala
Species:	C. amestris
Binomial name
Catocala amestris Strecker, 1874[1][2]
Synonyms
Catocala anna Grote, 1874 Catocala westcottii Grote, 1878

Catocala amestris, the three-staff underwing, is a species of Catocalini that occurs in North America. It is considered endangered and is legally protected in the state of Michigan.[3]

Description

Like most underwings, C. amestris has a brightly colored hindwing and brownish-gray forewings, the wingspan is 1.6-1.8in (4-4.5 cm). The forewings have a blotch that strongly resembles a kidney shape, beyond that the wing has mixed wavy lines. The hindwings have two wavy black lines separating a yellow-orange coloration. The caterpillar of this species is bluish white with a yellowish coloring on the dorsum, or top side. It also has an orange band along with 7 thin black lines on its sides.[4]

Habitat

Between June and August this moth can be seen in dry-mesic prairie lands and oak forest. Due to only having one genus of host plant, Amorpha spp., the moth is hard to find in even these areas.

References

1. Yu, Dicky Sick Ki. "Catocala amestris Strecker 1874". Home of Ichneumonoidea. Taxapad. Archived from the original on July 7, 2015.
2. "Moth Photographers Group Catocala amestris - 8844". Retrieved 2009-06-11.
3. "Species Catocala amestris - Three-staff Underwing - Hoges#8844 - BugGuide". Retrieved 2009-06-11.
4. "Catocala amestris (Three-staff underwing) - MNFL Rare Species Explorer". Archived from the original on 2009-01-05. Retrieved 2009-06-11.