Bug FAQAcontia areli
Acontia areli · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Noctuidae
Males have forewings 10 to 12.5 mm long and females 10 to 12 mm. It lives in North America, recorded from several western US states, British Columbia and Mexico. Adults fly in July and August, varying with location.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Forewings are about 10 to 12.5 mm long in males and 10 to 12 mm in females.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are on the wing from July to August, depending on where they live.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 9 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, Colorado, California, Nevada, Oregon.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
When are Acontia areli adults active?
Adults are active in July and August, with timing varying by location.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Noctuidae)
Ipsilon Dart MothAgrotis ipsilonDamages trees, gardens or crops
Fall Armyworm MothSpodoptera frugiperdaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Army Cutworm MothEuxoa auxiliarisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Large Yellow UnderwingNoctua pronubaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Silver ΥAutographa gamma
American DaggerAcronicta americanaCan irritate skinSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarache_areli
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-25 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-25.