Genus Nomophila Rank Species | ||
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Similar Nomophila, Udea rubigalis, Desmia funeralis, Hymenia perspectalis, Achyra rantalis | ||
Lucerne moth crambidae nomophila nearctica dorsal view
Nomophila nearctica, the lucerne moth, clover nomophila, false webworm, celery stalkworm or American celery webworm, is a moth of the Crambidae family. It is known from southern Canada and all of the United States, south to Mexico and the Neotropics.
Contents
- Lucerne moth crambidae nomophila nearctica dorsal view
- Crambid moth crambidae nomophila nearctica on blossom
- References
The wingspan is 24–35 mm. When at rest, adults keep their wings overlapped and hugged against the abdomen, giving a long and narrow profile. The forewing is elongate, grayish-brown with two side-by-side dark oval spots near the middle of the wing, and another dark bilobed spot a little farther out. The hindwings are much broader. They are pale brownish-gray with a whitish fringe.
Adults are on wing from April to November in North America.
The larvae feed on celery, grasses, lucerne, Medicago sativa, Polygonum, Melilotus and various other low-growing herbaceous plants. They have a black head. The abdomen is variably light brown to dark gray with a bumpy surface and sparse long hairs and a thin dark dorsal line bordered by narrow pale strip.