Archiearis infans
Encyclopedia
The Infant or First-born Geometer (Archiearis infans) is a moth
of the Geometridae family. It is found from Alaska
to Newfoundland and the northern United States
, south in the east to New Jersey
, south in the west to California
.
The wingspan
is 30-33 mm. Adults have mottled brown forewings with a prominent white antemedian and postmedian patch at the costal margin. The hindwings are bright rust-orange with variably developed black median and marginal bands. Both sexes are similar. Adults are on wing from late March to early May in one generation per year.
The larva feed on the leaves of birch, alder, poplar and willow, although larvae that hatch before leaves are available may feed on flower catkins. The species overwinters as a pupa.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Geometridae family. It is found from Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
to Newfoundland and the northern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, south in the east to New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, south in the west to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 30-33 mm. Adults have mottled brown forewings with a prominent white antemedian and postmedian patch at the costal margin. The hindwings are bright rust-orange with variably developed black median and marginal bands. Both sexes are similar. Adults are on wing from late March to early May in one generation per year.
The larva feed on the leaves of birch, alder, poplar and willow, although larvae that hatch before leaves are available may feed on flower catkins. The species overwinters as a pupa.
Subspecies
- Archiearis infans infans
- Archiearis infans oregonensis (Swett, 1917) (southern British Columbia to California)