Hypena californica

Butler, 1870

California cloverworm moth, western bomolocha

Hypena californica is a in the Erebidae found along the Pacific coast of North America. Its larvae are food that feed primarily on nettles (Urtica ). The species inhabits coastal rainforests and mixed hardwood forests at low elevations, with riparian zone preferences at higher elevations. It holds no economic importance.

Hypena californica 05 by CBG Photography Group, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics. Used under a CC0 license.

Hypena californica 04 by CBG Photography Group, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics. Used under a CC0 license.

Hypena californica 03 by CBG Photography Group, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics. Used under a CC0 license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Hypena californica: /haɪˈpiːnə kælɪˈfɔːrnɪkə/

These audio files are automatically generated. While they are not always 100% accurate, they are a good starting point.

Identification

The California cloverworm can be distinguished from related Hypena by its geographic restriction to the Pacific coast. have a wingspan and pattern typical of the Hypena, with a somewhat triangular forewing shape. The MONA or Hodges number 8462 provides a standardized reference for identification in North American moth databases. Larvae feeding on Urtica species in the described range support identification.

Images

Habitat

Coastal rainforests and mixed hardwood forests at relatively low elevations, where the is fairly common. At higher mountain elevations, it prefers riparian zones.

Distribution

Pacific coast of North America from southern California to southern British Columbia, with some inland records on the western edge of Idaho. Distribution records also include Alberta and Saskatchewan in Canada.

Diet

Larvae are food feeding mainly on Urtica (nettles). feeding habits are not documented in the provided sources.

Host Associations

Urtica - larval food plantprimary ; larvae feed mainly on nettles

Human Relevance

No economic importance. The has never been considered a pest or beneficial species in agricultural or other human contexts.

Similar Taxa

Hypena scabraBoth are Hypena with cloverworm , but H. scabra (green cloverworm) is found in eastern and central North America and is a significant soybean pest, whereas H. californica is restricted to the Pacific coast and has no agricultural impact.

More Details

Taxonomic authority note

Sources differ on authorship: Butler, 1870 per Catalogue of Life and GBIF; Behr, 1870 per NCBI .

Observation data

iNaturalist records 656 observations of this , indicating it is moderately well-documented by citizen scientists.