Observation date: July 06, 2016
Submitted by: tirvine2020
Specimen type: Photograph
Observation notes: These moths were both found flying near a light one evening, and they have fairly different behaviors in comparison to most other nocturnal moths. First, they fly more like a butterfly in quick flits, but they never glide like many butterflies. They also tend to go to lights, and not necessarily get too close to them, but rather rest from a slightly greater distance than most moths and position themselves so that their backs are facing the lights as much as possible. Another anomaly as shown in the picture is how these moths do not hide their forewings between the hindwings, and they do not seem to have much flexibility in those areas.
Status: Resident
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: June 30, 2018
Coordinator notes: This is a species in the genus Xanthotype. According to Rindge 1978, the adults of all species included in this genus are, for practical purposes, externally indistinguishable from one another, as they are almost identical in color, maculation, and size. It therefore follows that these species cannot be reliably separated from photographs.