Reprint of the original, first published in 1882.

There are thousands of moth species in the northeast of North America, and while it might seem that they are all drab grays and browns, there is actually a startling variety. They come in a rainbow of colors, from brilliant oranges and pinks to soft greens and violets. There are moths with colorful leopard-like spots, and ones that look more like B-movie aliens; some that are as large as your hand, and others the size of a grain of rice. With helpful tips on how to attract and identify moths, range maps and season graphs showing when and where to find each species, and clear photographs that use the unique Peterson arrow system for easy identification, this guide provides everything an amateur or experienced moth-watcher needs. Sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation and the Roger Tory Peterson Institute.

"Two of North America's most prolific and respected specialists on moths--particularly those of the West--have combined over a century of experience and scholarship to introduce western moths of all families authoritatively to both the amateur and the experienced professional entomologist. This biologically oriented and beautifully illustrated treatment of a quarter of all known western moth species fills a long-needed void, and does it superbly."--Charles V. Covell Jr., author of A Field Guide to Moths of Eastern North America "This work sets a new high water mark for North American lepidopterology. Considering the authors' century of combined studies of western Lepidoptera, it is clear from the outset that no other team could have delivered a work so rich in taxonomic and life history information, much of it being original and appearing in the literature for the first time. I will read my copy more like a novel than a reference work, casting about the accounts and repeatedly flipping through the 2300 color images to better familiarize myself with our continent's rich and handsome diversity of moths. Moths of Western North America will serve as both gateway and catalyst for the study of moths for decades, and especially for microlepidopterans--for whom no like work exists in the New World."--David L. Wagner, author of Caterpillars of Eastern North America "Recent years have seen a surge of interest in moths, with growing appreciation of their amazing diversity and their great ecological importance. Information on western moths has been scattered and scarce, however, so this new volume is a tremendous step forward. Jerry Powell and Paul Opler bring a vast amount of knowledge and experience to the subject, and their Moths of Western North America is a landmark publication, instantly indispensable to anyone with a serious interest in Lepidoptera."--Kenn Kaufman, coauthor of Kaufman Field Guide to Butterflies of North America

Moths . . . has long been recognized as the most authoritative introduction to the moths of eastern North America. Intended for nonspecialists, but greatly appreciated by intermediate and advanced users, this book identifies and describes more than 1300 species in 59 families. The 1300 species, which include at least one in each of the 59 families present in the region, are those most likely to be encountered in eastern North America. Introductory chapters describe the anatomy and life cycle of moths and processes of collecting and preparing specimens. For each species, the book includes a description during the adult stage, the range as it was known in 1984, the flight season for adults, their relative abundance, and selected other information. Individual moths are portrayed from above, with wings extended, in 63 plates, many in color, while selected anatomical features, primarily wing shape and venation patterns, are illustrated in 76 black-and-white line drawings and photographs.

This annotated list arranges the 3693 species of Noctuoidea known from North America into six families (Doidae, Notodontidae, Erebidae, Euteliidae, Nolidae, Noctuidae) and further arranges these into subfamilies, tribes, and subtribes, based on the most recent phylogenetic information. All changes from the previous list in 1983 are documented in 716 taxonomic notes and 331 literature references. These changes include documentation for 367 new species that have been described since the 1983 list, 230 species added through new records or taxonomic changes, and 259 species that are removed or synonymized. A total of 166 taxonomic changes are proposed in the list.