''Leptarctia'' is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

tiger moth The de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s British biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and other operators as a primary trainer aircraft. ...

genus in the family

Erebidae The Erebidae are a family (biology), family of moths in the superfamily Noctuoidea. The family is among the largest families of moths by species count and contains a wide variety of well-known macromoth groups. The family includes the underwin ...

described by Stretch in 1872. Its only species, ''Leptarctia californiae'', was described by Francis Walker in 1855. It is found in western North America, from

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

and

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and north to

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. The habitat consists of open forests, meadows and clearings in the mountains. The length of the forewings is 12–17 mm."''Leptarctia californiae'' (Walker, 1855)"
''Pacific Northwest Moths''. Retrieved September 27, 2019.

Forms

There are two described forms: *''Leptarctia californiae'' f. ''decia'' Boisduval, 1869 *''Leptarctia californiae'' f. ''dimidiata'' Stretch, 1872

Former species

*'' Leptarctia albiceps'' Rothschild, 1933

References

* Spilosomina Moths described in 1855 Monotypic moth genera {{Spilosomina-stub