One Spotted Variant Moth

Not likely to be of concern in Alberta, although known from less than five records.

Adults fly in June to mid July.

Nova Scotia to southern interior BC, south to FL and MS (McGuffin 1977).

The hindwing margin is slightly more scalloped in Hypagyrtis than other similar, mid-sized grey geometrids; it is otherwise difficult to characterize this genus externally without visual comparison to species in the Boarmiini such as Aethalura, Iridopsis and Protoboarmia. This genus is taxonomically very difficult, and there are no reliable genitalic differences; H. unipunctaria occurs in the parkland and southern boreal region in Alberta, while H. piniata is associated only with conifers in the north-central region. H. piniata supposedly lacks the brownish shading in the subterminal area found in H. unipunctaria. Treated as H. subatomaria by McGuffin (1977).

Mixedwood forests and aspen parkland

Larvae are mottled grey, and are twig mimics. They overwinter exposed on tree bark and branches, and are important food sources for wintering insectivorous birds in the eastern US (B. Heinrich cited in Wagner et al. 2001). McGuffin (1977) describes the immature stages in detail. Adults come to light

Larvae are generalists on deciduous trees and shrubs. Rosaceous shrubs including Amelanchier, Rosa, and Prunus have been reported as hosts several times, but also Salix, Populus, Alnus, Betula, Corylus, Fraxinus, Tilia, Ulmus, Quercus and Acer (McGuffin 1977).

Hypagyrtis unipunctata, the one-spotted variant moth or white spot, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Adrian Hardy Haworth in 1809. It can be found from Nova Scotia to Florida, west to Texas, northwest to British Columbia on the North American continent, and is also found in Eurasia.

The wingspan is 20–47 mm. Adults are on wing from April to September in most of North America and from June to July in northern North America. There are one to two generations per year.

The larvae feed on the leaves of a wide range of deciduous trees and shrubs, including Amelanchier, Rosa, Prunus, Salix, Populus, Alnus, Betula, Corylus, Fraxinus, Tilia, Ulmus, Quercus and Acer.