Spilosoma vestalis

Vestal tiger-moth
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Superfamily:	Noctuoidea
Family:	Erebidae
Subfamily:	Arctiinae
Genus:	Spilosoma
Species:	S. vestalis
Binomial name
Spilosoma vestalis Packard, 1864[1]
Synonyms
Spilosoma vestalis ab. amelaina Dyar, 1893

Spilosoma vestalis, the Vestal tiger-moth, is a moth in the family Erebidae. It was described by Alpheus Spring Packard in 1864. It is found along the coast of western North America, from California north to the Kitsap Peninsula in Washington and western Idaho. The habitat consists of wet forests, moist forests, coastal rainforests, low elevation mixed hardwood forests and high elevation mixed conifer forests.

The length of the forewings is 19–26 mm. The wings are pure white, marked with a few black dots. Adults are on wing from May to June.

The larvae feed on various plants, including Alnus rubra and Quercus garryana. They are black with long tufts of black hairs along the dorsum of the body and pale yellow-white hairs along the lateral line.^[2]

In Cotati, California

References[]

• Beccaloni, G.; Scoble, M.; Kitching, I.; Simonsen, T.; Robinson, G.; Pitkin, B.; Hine, A.; Lyal, C., eds. (2003). "Spilosoma vestalis". The Global Lepidoptera Names Index. Natural History Museum.
• Spilosoma vestalis at BOLD
• Spilosoma vestalis at EOL
• Spilosoma vestalis at BHL