The eight-spotted forester is a part of the family Noctuidae, the owlet moths. It was first described in 1775 by Johan Christian Fabricius. It is predictably named after the 8 spots on its wings.
Description This species has a black body with pale yellow patches of tegulae (sclerites above the base of the costal vein/the top edge of a moth wing). The legs are black with the front and middle legs having orange hairs. The forewings have two pale yellow or white spots on both sides, and the hindwings have two white spots on both sides. It also can have a yellow and white patten on the back of the abdomen (middle to lower body).
Wingspan: 3 - 3.7 cm (≈1.81 - 1.45 in)
The larvae is lavender with orange bands breaking up each segment. In between the orange bands are thin black lines over the visible lavender. The enter body is sprinkled in black bumps and thin white hairs. The head is orange.
Caterpillar length: 2.54 - 3.81 cm (1 - 1.5 in)
Diet and Habitat Larvae of this moth eat the underside of the leaves of wild grapes, cultivated grapes, Virginia Creeper, and peppervines. Adult moths eat nectar from flowers of herbaceous (no wood stems above ground). Adults specifically eat from sweetleaf (Symplocos tinctoria).
This moth is native to Canada and can be found in eastern and central Northern America from Nova Scotia to Florida and South Dakota to Texas. It is also found in Mexico according to Moth Identification. They inhabit wooded areas that meet open fields as the fields have flowers to feed the adults and the wooded areas have grapevine and Virginia creeper to feed larvae.
Mating This species are univoltine (one brood a year) in the north, mating from April to June. In warmer climates there may be two to three broods a year, mating in April to June then in August. Eggs are lain on grapevines and Virginia creeper in the summer. Pupae overwinter in soil or wood cracks.
Predators This moth is preyed on in all stages of life and are dinural (active during the day). Larvae spit an orange tinted liquid when threatened and escape by attaching a line of silk threat to its perch from its mouth, then falling off the perch.
Fun Fact
The larvae of this species can be considered pests to commercial and decorative vineyards.
This moth has two subspecies: Alypia octomaculata octomaculata (Fabricuis, 1775) and Alypia octomaculata matuta (H. Edwards, 1883)
This species pupae can go into a dormant state while called a “diapause” where development is delayed. The longest recorded time for this species is 4 years. The reason this species exits a diapause is unknown.
(Source: Wikipedia [1][2][3], MISSOURI DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION, Moth Identification, MarylandBiodiversityProject)
