Yellow Spotted Renia

At the edge of its range. No concerns.

Nova Scotia west to Alberta, south to North Carolina and Colorado. No specific Alberta data is available, although there are reported to be Alberta specimen(s) in Ottawa (CNCI).

A small (2.6-3.1 cm wingspan) light brown moth with somewhat triangular pointed wings. The forewings are crossed by thin pale antemedian and postmedian lines, the latter in particular outlined in darker scales, and a diffuse dark median band. The subterminal line is pale and distinct near the costa, otherwise obscure or marked only by a few dark scales. The orbicular and reniform spots are dull orange, partly outlined with black and with two larger black dots in the reniform. The hindwings are the same color as the forewings, with the postmedian line continuing across them from the forewings. The antennae are unusual and diagnostic. There is a small claw and plume about three-quarters of the way toward the tip, and the thin terminal third curls up when dried, while the basal portion remains stiff and straight. Both the sexes are similar, but the female is less strongly marked.

Wooded and shrubby habitats.

Adults are nocturnal and come to light.

No Alberta data; elsewhere reported to feed on dead leaves of deciduous trees (Crumb, 1956).

Renia flavipunctalis, the yellow-dotted renia, yellow-spotted renia or even-lined renia, is a litter moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Carl Geyer in 1832. It is found from southern Canada (from Nova Scotia west to Alberta) to Florida and Texas.

The wingspan is 26–31 mm. Adults are on wing from June to August. There is one generation in the north-east.

The larvae feed on organic matter, including dead leaves of deciduous trees.