---
title: "Black Witch"
description: "Ascalapha odorata — Insecten en spinnen. The erebid moth Ascalapha odorata, commonly known as the black witch, is a large bat-shaped, dark-colored nocturnal moth, normally ranging from the southern United States to Brazil."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/nl/animal/black-witch
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Black Witch

> Ascalapha odorata — Insecten en spinnen. The erebid moth Ascalapha odorata, commonly known as the black witch, is a large bat-shaped, dark-colored nocturnal moth, normally ranging from the southern United States to Brazil.

- Scientific name: *Ascalapha odorata*
- Category: `insects` (Insecten en spinnen)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 36659
- Wikidata: [Q4803772](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4803772)
- iNaturalist taxon: [61503](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/61503)

## Names

- en: Black Witch
- de: Schwarze Hexe
- es: Polilla Bruja
- fr: Sorcière Noire

## Countries with the most observations

US (11316), MX (9062), BR (4486), CO (2190), CR (1592), EC (974), AR (853), PA (591), HN (447), PR (289), VE (284), GT (269)

## Summary

The erebid moth Ascalapha odorata, commonly known as the black witch, is a large bat-shaped, dark-colored nocturnal moth, normally ranging from the southern United States to Brazil. Ascalapha odorata is also migratory into Canada and most states of the United States. It is the largest noctuoid in the continental United States. In the folklore of many Central and South American cultures, it is associated with death or misfortune.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascalapha_odorata

## Photo

![Black Witch](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/black-witch/medium.jpg)

Photo: Liz F · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/181490224

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/black-witch?lang=nl` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).