Gray-edged Hypena

moth

Common name: Gray-edged hypena, Fishers Island NY, June 2017

Scientific name: Hypena madefactalis 

Season: One generation per year, adults common by June.

Food: As caterpillars, the gray-edged hypena feeds exclusively on walnut, and in the Northeast, black walnut (Juglans nigra) is its favorite.

Ecology: The gray-edged hypena, like many moths and caterpillars, are specialist feeders, meaning they depend on only one or two kinds of plants to survive.