Horrid Zale Moth

Zale horrida · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Erebidae

Also called: Horrid Zale

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Horrid Zale Moth
Photo: Laura Gaudette, CC BY

It lives in North America.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Jacob Hübner first described the species in 1819.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

The moth is found across North America.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

Its native range includes North America.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 35 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Massachusetts, Ohio, Maryland, New York, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New Jersey.

Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.

Source: GBIF

Status: native in North America; native in United States; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist

Months it is reported in the US

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Source: GBIF

More photos

Horrid Zale Moth photo 3
Photo: Alie / C.A. Kratzer, CC BY-SA
Horrid Zale Moth photo 4
Photo: Nick Block, CC BY
Horrid Zale Moth photo 5
Photo: Adrienne van den Beemt, CC BY
Horrid Zale Moth photo 6
Photo: unknown, CC0

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/Zale_horrida

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

Every fact on Bug FAQ comes from a named source (university extension sites, government agencies, GBIF, iNaturalist, Wikipedia). The source is linked next to each section. If we have no source for something, we leave it out.