Bug FAQBrachylomia populi
Brachylomia populi · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Noctuidae
Source: Wikipedia
The moth has a wingspan of about 30 mm. The caterpillars eat leaves of cottonwood, aspen (Populus) and oak (Quercus), potentially harming those trees.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Wingspan is roughly 30 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Larvae feed on leaves of cottonwood, aspen and oak species.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Occurs from British Columbia and Alberta south through Colorado, Utah and into Arizona.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 9 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Colorado, Montana, Washington, Wyoming, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Nevada.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
Questions people ask
What plants do the larvae eat?
The larvae feed on the leaves of cottonwood, aspen and oak trees.
Source: Wikipedia
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/Brachylomia_populi
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-27 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-27.