MPG (species pages only) MPG (entire website) Entire Web

Digital Guide to Moth Identification

Crambidae 80a0712 – 4946   Ostrinia penitalis (Grote, 1876)              American Lotus Borer

Photographs are the copyrighted property of each photographer listed. Contact individual photographers for permission to use for any purpose.

© Mark Dreiling Large Map & Chart Report Errors About Maps

Synonymy: penitalis (Grote, 1876) (Botis) - MONA 1983: 4946 ssp. a. penitalis (Grote, 1876) (Botis)  nelumbialis (Smith, 1890) (Botis)  pyraustalis (Dyar, 1925) (Tholeria) Host Plants: Shropshire & Tallamy (2025) [accessed 6xii2025]: Host familiy: Apocynaceae Fabaceae Nelumbonaceae Nymphaeaceae Polygonaceae.  Host genera: Apocynum Lotus[unresolved] Nelumbo Nuphar Persicaria[=Polygonum] Polygonum[unresolved].  Notes: bore into stem, buds & fruit (Munroe 1976a); [Lotus sp. record may refer to species reassigned to different genus]. Similar  : Species Pinned specimens of related species. (Hint: select View by Region on the related species page.)

References (Caution: DNA barcoding at BOLD provides evidence of relatedness, not proof of identification; some BOLD specimens shown may not be sequenced.)

Barcode of Life (BOLD) - Caution: Identifications often erroneous; DNA barcode provides evidence of relatedness, not proof of identification; many specimens not sequenced. Hall et al., 2021. The Moths of North Carolina - website (identification, habitats and life history) Munroe, E., 1976. Pyraloidea, Pyralidae (Part). The Moths of America north of Mexico, Fascicle 13.2A: 24; pl. 1.23-28. (PDF (no fee) or order book) Shropshire, K.J. & D.W. Tallamy, 2025. Lepidoptera of North America, north of Mexico: an annotated list containing geographic ranges and host-plant records. ZooKeys, 1261: 101-113; Suppl. 1. (PDF or read online) Species Page at Block Island Moths Species Page at BugGuide.Net Species Page at Mass Moths Species Page at iNaturalist

© Robin McLeod © David Reed © Hugh McGuinness © Bob Patterson © Steve Nanz © Nolie Schneider © Carol Wolf © Ken Childs

© Jim Vargo LG – (cc) Miss. Ent. Mus.

Moth Photographers Group  at the  Mississippi Entomological Museum  at the  Mississippi State University

Send suggestions, or submit photographs to Webmaster — Moth Photographers Group

Database design and scripting support provided by Mike Boone