Observation date: October 17, 2023
Date notes:
Submitted by: cabngirl
Specimen type: Photograph
Observation notes: I have previously ID'd one of these some years ago and recognized the pair parked on the wall under our porch light. I wondered if it was a male and female as there were some visual differences between the two; one being more dramatically striped than the other; however, I have found nothing about sexual dimorphism in my searches. Our house has a very large oak tree about 20' from the front door, the canopy extends over the entire front yard. Someone I know believed our tree may possibly be a Q. lobata hybrid. It never produces acorns. Uncertain as to the ID beyond that it appears to be very like a Valley Oak in general. I mention this as I read oaks are their host plant. I have a no-spray policy and try to leave the leaves that fall. The two moths were about 4-6" apart and I shot several photos. I picked one up off the wall to try to get a photo of the ventral but most of the photos are dorsal or profile. Weather has been mild to warming this week (70s to high 80s Tues, nights in the 50s), hardly any winds. The 2 moths have returned to our porch light 2 days later - I believe it's the same pair. I took more photos around 5pm today (10/19) of the two, the pale and darker, more or less in the same location. I have added those to the photos submitted. On a side note: I realized the previous sighting I submitted 12 years ago was precisely on the same date (10/17/2011) of the earlier night observation I am submitting currently!
Status: Unknown
Verified by: mcduck
Verified date: November 09, 2023
Coordinator notes: None.
