Virbia ferruginosa

Rusty holomelina
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Superfamily:	Noctuoidea
Family:	Erebidae
Subfamily:	Arctiinae
Genus:	Virbia
Species:	V. ferruginosa
Binomial name
	Virbia ferruginosa; (Walker, 1854)
Synonyms
	Crocota ferruginosa Walker, 1854; Holomelina ferruginosa; Crocota quinaria Grote, 1863; Crocota trimaculosa Reakirt, 1864; Holomelina buchholzi Wyatt, 1963;

Virbia ferruginosa, the rusty holomelina, is a moth in the family Erebidae. It was described by Francis Walker in 1854. It is found from Nova Scotia to British Columbia in Canada. In the United States it is found from the northeast and upper Midwest, south to Virginia, Mississippi, Missouri and Louisiana.

The length of the forewings is about 13.4 mm for males and 15 mm for females. The male forewings are cinnamon brown with a faint olive-brown discal spot. The hindwings are pinkish warm buff with cinnamon-brown subterminal markings. The female forewings are cinnamon, but the subterminal region is clay, with a faint brown discal spot. The hindwings are peach red, with a brown discal spot and brown subterminal markings. There is one generation per year with adults on wing in July.

Larvae have been reared on dandelion species.[1]

References

Zaspel, J.M., Weller S.J. & Cardé, R.T., 2008: "A faunal review of Virbia (formerly Holomelina) for North America North of Mexico (Arctiidae: Arctiinae: Arctiini)". Bulletin of the Florida Museum of Natural History. 48 (3): 59-118.

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[1] Zaspel, J.M., Weller S.J. & Cardé, R.T., 2008: "A faunal review of Virbia (formerly Holomelina) for North America North of Mexico (Arctiidae: Arctiinae: Arctiini)". Bulletin of the Florida Museum of Natural History. 48 (3): 59-118.