Bug FAQAmerican Swordgrass Moth
Xylena nupera · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Noctuidae
Also called: red swordgrass moth
The American Swordgrass Moth lives across North America, from New Jersey up to Nova Scotia and westward to northern California and British Columbia. Its native range covers the same region, spanning the northeastern United States and Canada to the Pacific Northwest.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in habitats ranging from the Atlantic coast of New Jersey to the Gulf of St. Lawrence in Nova Scotia, and across to the western coast of northern California and British Columbia.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 24 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Wyoming, Oregon, Alaska, Montana, Michigan, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Same family (Noctuidae)
Ipsilon Dart MothAgrotis ipsilonDamages trees, gardens or crops
Fall Armyworm MothSpodoptera frugiperdaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Army Cutworm MothEuxoa auxiliarisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Large Yellow UnderwingNoctua pronubaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Silver ΥAutographa gamma
American DaggerAcronicta americanaCan irritate skinSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylena_nupera
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-25 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-25.