Heliotrope Moth

Utetheisa pulchelloides · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Erebidae

Damages trees, gardens or crops. The larvae feed on several garden plants, so it can damage gardens and crops.

Source: Wikipedia

Heliotrope Moth
Photo: Landcare Research New Zealand Ltd., CC BY

Forewings are white with five broken scarlet bands and black spots, plus a marginal row of black spots. Hindwings are mostly translucent white, sometimes with black on the discocellular area. It lives across the Indo-Australian region, including places like Borneo, Australia, Greece and New Zealand.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Forewing white with five interrupted scarlet bands and a series of black spots between them. A marginal series of black spots runs along the wing edge. Hindwings are semi-diaphanous white; some specimens show black on the discocellulars. A very irregular black sub-marginal band is broad near the apex and between veins 1b and 3.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

It occurs throughout the Indo-Australian region, from Borneo and Hong Kong to Australia, Greece and the Seychelles.

Source: Wikipedia

Life cycle

Pupation occurs in a loose cocoon spun in leaf litter beneath the host plant.

Source: Wikipedia

More photos

Heliotrope Moth photo 3
Photo: Max Campbell, CC BY
Heliotrope Moth photo 4
Photo: Russell Best, CC BY

Questions people ask

Does the heliotrope moth damage garden plants?

Yes, its caterpillars feed on several garden species such as Heliotropium and Myosotis, which can harm gardens.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Erebidae)

Spongy MothSpongy MothLymantria disparDamages trees, gardens or cropsFall Webworm MothFall Webworm MothHyphantria cuneaDamages trees, gardens or cropsBrown-tail MothBrown-tail MothEuproctis chrysorrhoeaCan irritate skinIsabella Tiger MothIsabella Tiger MothPyrrharctia isabellaVirginian Tiger MothVirginian Tiger MothSpilosoma virginicaCan irritate skinSalt Marsh MothSalt Marsh MothEstigmene acrea

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utetheisa_pulchelloides

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.

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