Bug FAQConfused Eusarca Moth
Eusarca confusaria · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Geometridae
Also called: Confused Eusarca
The confused eusarca moth has a wingspan of about 3 to 4 cm and adults are usually yellow-tan with gray shading, sometimes darker, and may show dark spots near the wing edge. It lives in meadows and fields across eastern North America, from Nova Scotia down to Florida and west to Texas and Saskatchewan, and its larvae eat common plants such as asters, clover, dandelions and goldenrod. Adults are on the wing from April through October, and several other geometer moths look similar.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Adults are variable in colour, typically yellow to tan with gray smudging; some individuals are much darker, and a few have dark spots near the forewing’s outer edge.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
The wingspan ranges from 29 mm to 41 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They are found in meadows and fields where their host plants grow.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Caterpillars feed on asters, clover, dandelions and goldenrod.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
There is a single flight period that lasts from April to October.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are active from spring through fall, roughly April to October.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
This species is the only Eusarca found in the northern United States and Canada. Its range covers eastern North America from Nova Scotia south to Florida and extends west to Texas and Saskatchewan.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It can be confused with several other moths, including the dark-edged eusarca, juniper geometer, curve-toothed geometer, large maple spanworm, and rose hooktip.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 44 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Virginia.
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
More photos
Questions people ask
How can I tell this moth apart from similar species?
Look for the variable yellow-tan colour with gray smudging and occasional dark spots near the forewing edge; other species have different patterns.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Geometridae)
Willow BeautyPeribatodes rhomboidaria
Pale BeautyCampaea perlataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Large Lace-border MothScopula limboundataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Riband WaveIdaea aversata
Yellow Shell MothCamptogramma bilineata
Large Maple Spanworm MothProchoerodes lineolaDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eusarca_confusaria
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.