The Dingy cutworm also known as the Bent-line dart, is a member of the Noctuidae

Noctuidae

The Noctuidae or owlet moths are a family of robustly-built moths that includes more than 35,000 known species out of possibly 100,000 total, in more than 4,200 genera. They constitute the largest family in the Lepidoptera....

 family and is common throughout North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

. There are three other species of Feltia

Feltia

Feltia is a genus of moths of the Noctuidae family.-Species:* Feltia austrina * Feltia beringiana * Feltia boreana...

that are often confused for F. jaculifera and they are F. herilis

Feltia herilis

The Herald Dart or Master's Dart is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found from Vancouver Island to Newfoundland, north to the Northwest Territories border and south to the Gulf coast....

, F. subgothica

Feltia subgothica

The Gothic Dart or Subgothic Dart is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found in central North America, north to Quebec, Ontario and Saskatchewan.The wingspan is about 34 mm. Adults are on wing from July to September....

and F. tricosa

Feltia tricosa

The Tricose Dart is a moth of the Noctuidae family. It is found in central North America, north to Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba.The wingspan is about 35 mm. Adults are on wing from July to September in the north....

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Adult

An adults wingspan is 30 to 40mm in length. The forewing is dark gray to black with a white, gray and tan pattern of streaks. The M3 and CU1 veins have white-lines that extend from the bottom corner to the outer margin. These lines form a distinctive W-shape where they meet the subterminal line.

Larvae

The caterpillars of this species have a light gray dorsal surface and have four black dots on the dorsal surface of each abdominal segment. The ventral surface is pale yellow. The larvae feed upon more than forty different species of plants including but not limited to; Alfalfa

Alfalfa

Alfalfa is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop in the US, Canada, Argentina, France, Australia, the Middle East, South Africa, and many other countries. It is known as lucerne in the UK, France, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and known as...

, Aster, Blueberry

Blueberry

Blueberries are flowering plants of the genus Vaccinium with dark-blue berries and are perennial...

, Chickweed

Chickweed

Chickweed, a common name, can refer to:* Cerastium - Mouse-ear Chickweed* Holosteum - Jagged Chickweed* Moenchia - Upright Chickweed* Paronychia - Chickweed* Stellaria pro parte - Chickweed...

, Clover

Clover

Clover , or trefoil, is a genus of about 300 species of plants in the leguminous pea family Fabaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution; the highest diversity is found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes...

, Corn

Maize

Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...

, Dock

Rumex

The docks and sorrels, genus Rumex L., are a genus of about 200 species of annual, biennial and perennial herbs in the buckwheat family Polygonaceae....

, Flax

Flax

Flax is a member of the genus Linum in the family Linaceae. It is native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India and was probably first domesticated in the Fertile Crescent...

, Goldenrod

Goldenrod

Solidago, commonly called goldenrods, is a genus of about 100 species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Most are herbaceous perennial species found in the meadows and pastures, along roads, ditches and waste areas in North America. There are also a few species native to Mexico, South...

, miscellaneous garden vegetables, Grasses

Poaceae

The Poaceae is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called grasses, although the term "grass" is also applied to plants that are not in the Poaceae lineage, including the rushes and sedges...

, Mullein

Mullein

The Mulleins are a genus of about 250 species of flowering plants in the figwort family . They are native to Europe and Asia, with the highest species diversity in the Mediterranean region.They are biennial or perennial plants, rarely annuals or subshrubs, growing to 0.5–3 m tall...

, Oats

OATS

OATS - Open Source Assistive Technology Software - is a source code repository or "forge" for assistive technology software. It was launched in 2006 with the goal to provide a one-stop “shop” for end users, clinicians and open-source developers to promote and develop open source assistive...

, Raspberry

Raspberry

The raspberry or hindberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the genus Rubus, most of which are in the subgenus Idaeobatus; the name also applies to these plants themselves...

, Rye

Rye

Rye is a grass grown extensively as a grain and as a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe and is closely related to barley and wheat. Rye grain is used for flour, rye bread, rye beer, some whiskeys, some vodkas, and animal fodder...

, Tobacco

Tobacco

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

, and Wheat

Wheat

Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...

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Life cycle

Adults are seen flying from July to November and the larvae overwinter and emerge in the spring. They can be seen flying in many areas including fields, gardens, waste areas. Adults are nocturnal and often come to lights. In more arid areas adults can be found nectaring and resting on composite flowers in the late afternoon. Females will oviposit in flower heads, particularly in the heads of Asteraceae

Asteraceae

The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...

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