LepidopteraPyralidae – Pyralid Moths

Watson's Tallula Moth - Hodges#5592

Tallula watsoni

This record describes Tallula watsoni (species). Recorded family: Pyralidae. Recorded order: Lepidoptera.

Identification and Appearance

Watson's Tallula Moth - Hodges#5592 - Tallula watsoni — Contributed by Chuck Entz; Additional contributions by Mike Boone , cotinis , Steve Nanz , Robert Lord Zimlich

Habitus Drawing T. watsoni is found in extreme coastal Georgia, much of Florida and the southern tip of Texas. The am. line is typically fairly straight whereas in atrifascialis it is angled outwardly below the cell giving the am. band a more constricted appearance. See Barnes & McDunnough, p. 220 and pl. 18 , fig. 6. Most of the MPG images for watsoni were actually atrifascialis and have been moved. BOLD likewise has several misplaced atrifascialis on the species page for watsoni . - Steve Nanz 6/24/2018

Identification notes

Habitus Drawing

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
Superfamily: Pyraloidea
Family: Pyralidae (Pyralid Moths)
Subfamily: Epipaschiinae
Genus: Tallula

Imported taxonomy record. Source availability varies; see the source references and editorial policy below.

Diet and Behavior

Life History

Caterpillars are known to inhabit the web of a spider, the Social Cobweb Weaver, Anelosimus studiosus . The web is thought to provide the caterpillar protection while it feeds on leaves, and sometimes twigs

About Butterflies and Moths: the wider group

Order-level background for Lepidoptera, the group containing Tallula watsoni. Species-specific details appear above.

Group overview

Lepidoptera includes approximately 180,000 described species of butterflies and moths. Moths outnumber butterflies roughly 10:1. The monarch butterfly's eastern population has declined by more than 80% since the mid-1990s, and the western population by over 95% since the 1980s. The IUCN lists the migratory monarch as Vulnerable.

Ecological role of the group

Butterflies and moths are essential indicators of ecosystem health. As caterpillars, they are a primary food source for birds - a single nest of blue tit chicks requires ~10,000 caterpillars. Adult moths pollinate many night-blooming plants.

Economic and practical significance of the group

Lepidoptera are critical pollinators. In Europe, grassland butterfly species have declined by almost 50% since the early 1990s. In the UK, three-quarters of butterflies are in decline. In the U.S., five butterfly species have gone extinct since 1950, with 29 listed as endangered.

Recorded sources for this group: IUCN Red List, Xerces Society, USFWS, PNAS, WWF. Imported estimates may describe particular regions or reporting periods.

Explore Lepidoptera families and species →