Acrapex relicta Ferguson, 1991
Cane-boring Moth
NatureServe Global Rank: G4
Virginia State Rank: S2S3
VA DGIF Tier: None
Federal Legal Status: None
Virginia Legal Status: None
Description: The Cane-boring Moth is a relatively small, light brown noctuid moth with narrow wings, longitudinal markings, and a characteristic pale discal spot which may or may not have a dark center.
Similar species: The Narrow-winged Borer (Chortodes defecta) is a similar species, but larger in size, more yellowish in color, and found in a more northern distribution.
North American Range: This species is only known from three widely distributed locations of the southeastern coastal plain of North America: Charleston, South Carolina, near Beaufort, North Carolina, and the Great Dismal Swamp in southeastern Virginia. It is widely distributed throughout the Old World tropics.
VA Observations by Locality: Suffolk, City of | Chesapeake, City of | Suffolk, City of
Flight season and broods: Adults occur in late spring or early summer. This is a single brood species.
Habitat and Food Plants: The Cane-boring Moth is found only in patches of cane, or occasionally exotic bamboo stands. It is suspected to be a grass feeder.
Behavior and Ecology: Adults are normally very sedentary and seldom move more than a few meters from cane stands.
Population trend and potential threats: Fire is a potential threat to cane-boring species, especially along the coastal plain.
Management practices: Since little is known regarding its life history, management practices have not been determined; however, maintenance of cane stands would seem prudent.
References: Ferguson, Douglas C. 1991. First Record of the Genus Acrapex from the New World, with Description of a New Species from the Carolinas and Virginia (Noctuidae: Amphipyrinae). Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 45: 209-214.
Moth Photographers Group at eh Mississippi Entomological Museum at Mississippi State University. Web application at: http://mothphotographersgroup.msstate.edu/large_map.php?hodges=9520.1 Accessed: 28Apr2013
NatureServe. 2011. NatureServe Explorer: An online encyclopedia of life [web application]. Version 7.1. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia. Available http://www.natureserve.org/explorer. (Accessed: 18Apr2012).
Schweitzer, D. F., M. C. Minno, and D. L. Wagner. 2011. Rare, Declining and Poorly Known Butterflies and Moths (Lepidoptera) of Forests and Woodlands in the Eastern United States. USDA Forest Service, Morgantown, WV, FHTET-2011-01. 517 pp.