Catocala sordida
kah-TOCK-uh-lah mm SOR-dih-duh
Grote, 1877

The Sordid Underwing, posed scan by Bill Oehlke
(Montague, P.E.I., August 25, 2002).

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY: Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: Noctuidae Group: Noctuinina Subfamily: Catocalinae Genus: Catocala, Schrank, 1802

MIDI MUSIC "Moon River" copyright C. Odenkirk MIDI CITY ON.OFF <bgsound src="moon.mid" LOOP=FOREVER>

DISTRIBUTION:

The Catocala sordida moth (wingspan: 37-45mm) flies from Saskatchewan east to New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island and south through Maine and Connecticut to Florida, west to Texas and North to Manitoba.

The forewing is lighter along the costa and darker along the inner margin. Dark medial lines are especially evident through the lighter shades near the costa. The outer black band of the hindwing is broken near the anal angle. Catocala sordida, Canadian Biodiversity Information facility.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Catocala sordida flies as a single generation with moths on the wing from May to September.

Moths come in to lights readily and also to bait.

The Catocala sordida caterpillar shows a preference for Celtis and Vaccinium.

ECLOSION:

Adults eclose from pupae formed under leaf litter.

SCENTING AND MATING:

Catocala sordida females emit an airbourne pheromone and males use their antennae to track the scent plume.

EGGS, CATERPILLARS, COCOONS, AND PUPAE: Eggs are deposited on bush bark in the fall and hatch the following spring. Mature larvae Image courtesy of

Larval Food Plants

Listed below are primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants. It is hoped that this alphabetical listing followed by the common name of the foodplant will prove useful. The list is not exhaustive, although some species seem very host specific. Experimenting with closely related foodplants is worthwhile.

Celtis Vaccinium.....

Hackberry Blueberry

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