This relatively less common Nemoria species was
described from specimens collected in North Carolina. It is also know
from Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky. At least one
specimen is reported from the Berlin Wildlife Area in Portage County,
Ohio. Larvae appear to be host specific, feeding on Hypericum (St.
John's Wort) species.
In wing markings, the species greatly resembles N. mimosaria,
which likely overlaps it in some parts of its range. Like mimosaria,
the wings of tuscarora show simple convex am and pm lines, white
fringe, and absence of any red terminal line. The abdomen, however,
lacks the distinct white spot on the first abdominal segment. Genitalic
morphology suggests a closer alliance with the more southern species,
Nemoria elfa, Nemoria catachloa and Nemoria outina.
It is likely that this species exists in small populations at other
unreported localities where appropriate host plant populations are
established. In 2005, a Nemoria tuscarora adult was collected in
Pennsylvania in Fayette County. The moth appears to be rather common in
habitats where the host plant is well established. In June and early
July of 2005, we collected this species in good numbers in wetland areas
of Garrett Co., Maryland where Hypericum densiflorum was abundant
alongside Vaccinium and other plant species of the
high elevation central Appalachian wetlands community.
Nemoria tuscarora larvae (at right) are quite distinctive
among North American Nemoria in their green and red coloration
and their somewhat reduced dorsolateral abdominal protuberances. For
additional images of immature stages of Nemoria tuscarora, click
here:
Nemoria tuscarora
eggs, larvae and pupae.
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