Common NamePutnam's Looper MothSeasonalityAdults have been captured in Alberta from late May through August and once in early October.IdentificationA medium-size moth ( 3.0-3.2 cm wingspan). The forewings are dark rusty-brown, with a series of fine faint dark oblique lines, and with bright metallic rusty orange on the basal portion of the costa and along the lower median area. There is an oblique dull silver patch on the apex and a prominent two-part silver stigma, comprised of a large triangular spot followed by a smaller, separate satellite spot. Hindwings are dark brown with rust fringes. The antennae are simple, and both the sexes are similar. The similar P. contexta has been reported from Saskatchewan and should be watched for in eastern Alberta. It has paler hindwings, and the stigma is a single elongated spot constricted somewhat in the center.
Scientific NamePlusia putnamiCommon Name
Putnam's Looper Moth
Habitat
Grassy clearings, woodland edges, wet meadows and wetland margins.
Seasonality
Adults have been captured in Alberta from late May through August and once in early October.
Identification
A medium-size moth ( 3.0-3.2 cm wingspan). The forewings are dark rusty-brown, with a series of fine faint dark oblique lines, and with bright metallic rusty orange on the basal portion of the costa and along the…
A medium-size moth ( 3.0-3.2 cm wingspan). The forewings are dark rusty-brown, with a series of fine faint dark oblique lines, and with bright metallic rusty orange on the basal portion of the costa and along the lower median area. There is an oblique dull silver patch on the apex and a prominent two-part silver stigma, comprised of a large triangular spot followed by a smaller, separate satellite spot. Hindwings are dark brown with rust fringes. The antennae are simple, and both the sexes are similar. The similar P. contexta has been reported from Saskatchewan and should be watched for in eastern Alberta. It has paler hindwings, and the stigma is a single elongated spot constricted somewhat in the center.
Life History
Putnam's Looper Moth is nocturnal and comes to light. The flight period is quite extended, and there may be at least a partial second brood.
Conservation
A fairly common, widespread species; no concerns.
Diet Info
The larvae feed on a variety of grasses and sedges, as well as on bur-reed (Sparganium).
Range
In the Palearctic, it occurs from eastern Siberia to Fennoscandia, Great Britain and France. In North America, it ranges from Newfoundland and Labrador to central Alaska and the interior of British Columbia, south to…
In the Palearctic, it occurs from eastern Siberia to Fennoscandia, Great Britain and France. In North America, it ranges from Newfoundland and Labrador to central Alaska and the interior of British Columbia, south to Pennsylvania, Washington, northeastern California, and in the Rocky Mountains to Utah and Colorado. It is found throughout the wooded parts of Alberta, from the southern Foothills to Lake Athabasca, but appears to be absent from the wooded valleys of the Grasslands region.
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Citation
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Page Citation for Plusia putnami
Page Citation
"Species Details - Plusia putnami, University of Alberta E.H. Strickland Entomological Museum." University of Alberta Museums Search Site, https://search.museums.ualberta.ca/g/2-1133. Accessed 07 Sep. 2024.
References
AuthorLafontaine, J. Donald and Robert W. Poole
TitleNoctuoidea : Noctuidae (part) : Plusiinae
Publication Date1995
Pages182
AuthorEichlin, Thomas D. and Hugh B. Cunningham
TitleThe Plusiinae (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) of America north of Mexico, emphasizing genitalic and larval morphology.
Publication Date1978
Pages122
Specimen Information
There are 132 specimens of this Species.
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131 results plotted on map in 53 markers. Note: Only records with latitude and longitude coordinates are plotted on map.