Apantesis virgo
Species of moth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Apantesis virgo, the virgin tiger moth, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.[1][2] It is found in North America from Newfoundland south to Florida west to Alberta.
| Apantesis virgo | |
|---|---|
| |
| Male Virgin Tiger Moth | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Superfamily: | Noctuoidea |
| Family: | Erebidae |
| Subfamily: | Arctiinae |
| Genus: | Apantesis |
| Species: | A. virgo |
| Binomial name | |
| Apantesis virgo | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
The wingspan is about 56 mm.[3]
The larvae feed on various low-growing plants, including Thermopsis rhombifolia and Plantago species.[4] The species overwinters in the larval stage.[5]
This species was formerly a member of the genus Grammia, but was moved to Apantesis along with the other species of the genera Grammia, Holarctia, and Notarctia.[6][7]
Subspecies
- Apantesis virgo virgo (from the Great Lakes region and Atlantic seaboard south through New England, to at least West Virginia. In the west, the range extends to north-eastern British Columbia)
- Apantesis virgo gigas B. C. Schmidt, 2009 (south-eastern United States, including the Great Smoky Mountains, south to Georgia and northern Florida)[8]
