Kebnat
INSECTS

Spear-marked Black Moth

Rheumaptera hastata

Insects
NativeNocturnal
Spear-marked Black Moth, photo 1 of 5
Spear-marked Black Moth, Caterpillar
Spear-marked Black Moth, Male
16 mmLength

Butterfly or moth in the family Geometridae 16 mm long. Nocturnal. Lives on the tundra. Feeds on plants.

There are 176 observations of Spear-marked Black Moth in Québec, mostly in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Capitale-Nationale and Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine, and it has been reported in 16 of the 17 regions. They peak in June and July and become rare from September to May.

Through the year

JFMAMJJASOND

Where to see it

  1. Abitibi-Témiscamingue42
  2. Capitale-Nationale26
  3. Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine19
  4. Bas-Saint-Laurent15
  5. Mauricie15
  6. Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean14
  7. Estrie9
  8. Nord-du-Québec5
  9. Laurentides5
  10. Montérégie5
  11. Outaouais5
  12. Chaudière-Appalaches4
  13. Lanaudière4
  14. Montréal4
  15. Côte-Nord3
  16. Centre-du-Québec1

Habitat

TundraLkovac

What the caterpillar eats

Paper birchBetula papyrifera
SweetgaleMyrica gale
Gray alderAlnus incana
Bog blueberryVaccinium uliginosum
Quaking aspenPopulus tremuloides
Bog birchBetula nana
Sweet fernComptonia peregrina
TOXIC
Balsam poplarPopulus balsamifera
Yellow birchBetula alleghaniensis
European black currantRibes nigrum
Cultivated currantRibes rubrum
European white birchBetula pendula

Similar species

White-striped BlackTrichodezia albovittata
White-banded Carpet MothSpargania luctuata
Common Carpet MothEpirrhoe alternata