Utetheisa ornatrix

species

“Rattlebox Moth”, “Ornate Bella Moth”

On the Web

On Wikipedia

Utetheisa ornatrix, also called the bella moth, ornate moth or rattlebox moth is a moth of the subfamily Arctiinae. It is aposematically colored ranging from pink, red, orange and yellow to white coloration with black markings arranged in varying patterns on its wings. It has a wingspan of 33–46 mm. Moths reside in temperate midwestern and eastern North America as well as throughout Mexico and other parts of Central America. Unlike most moths, the bella moth is diurnal. Formerly, the bella moth or beautiful utetheisa of temperate eastern North America was separated as Utetheisa bella. Now it is united with the bella moth in Utetheisa ornatrix. The larvae usually feed on Crotalaria species, which contain poisonous alkaloid compounds that render them unpalatable to most predators. Larvae…