Catocala ophelia
kah-TOCK-uh-lah mm oh-FEEL-ee-uh
Henry Edwards, 1880

Catocala ophelia, courtesy of Jeff Miller.

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY: Superfamily: Noctuoidea Family: Noctuidae Group: Noctuinina Subfamily: Catocalinae Genus: Catocala, Schrank, 1802

MIDI MUSIC "Moon River" copyright C. Odenkirk MIDI CITY ON.OFF <bgsound src="moon.mid" LOOP=FOREVER>

DISTRIBUTION:

Catocala ophelia (wingspan: 52mm) flies in the dry forests of Arizona, California and southwestern Oregon.

Dr. Wayne Whaley reports "C. ophelia does come into Utah from the south where it is more common. I know of 2 or 3 specimens taken in Salt Lake Co. and Utah Co."

The forewing is dark grey and the antemedial and postmedial lines are relatively smooth except for the two jagged spikes in the postmedial line near the apex. There is considerable brown shading outside the subterminal line.

The hindwing is deep red with the black median band constricted in the center and terminating before the inner margin. The black submarginal border is quite broad near the apex. The white fringe is heavily checked.

The subspecies dolli Beutenmüller, 1907, flies in the same region.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Catocala ophelia are on the wing in late summer, from mid July into early October in California.

The Catocala ophelia caterpillar feeds on Quercus macrocarpa and Quercus chrysolepis.

ECLOSION:

Adults eclose from pupae at soil surface.

SCENTING AND MATING:

Catocala ophelia females emit an airbourne pheromone and males use their antennae to track the scent plume.

Catocala ophelia ophelia male, Hualapai Mtn Rd, Mohave County, AZ.,
Aug 18 1991. collector, R.P. Meyer, courtesy of Kelly Richers.

EGGS, CATERPILLARS, COCOONS, AND PUPAE:

Eggs are deposited on tree bark in the fall and hatch the following spring.

Larval Food Plants

Listed below are primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants. It is hoped that this alphabetical listing followed by the common name of the foodplant will prove useful. The list is not exhaustive, although some species seem very host specific. Experimenting with closely related foodplants is worthwhile.

Quercus macrocarpa Quercus chrysolepis.......

Bur oak Canyon live oak

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