Cryptic moth

Normally, the only moths I spot in the daytime are those that are sleeping in conspicuous places such as on a window, wall or carpet. In their natural habitat, they are a great deal more difficult to find because their cryptic patterns allow them to blend with their chosen resting spot. I just don’t see them; presumably hungry birds miss many of them also.

In the early summer, the alfalfa looper (Autographa californica) drifts into our region on the south wind. In previous years, I had occasionally wondered about the hook-shaped pattern on its wings—why might these markings have evolved? My answer might lie in the picture, below, where one is sleeping on a fallen tree branch. Could this moth’s wings mimic lichen-covered bark?