Bug FAQLanceolate Moth
Helcystogramma hystricella · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Gelechiidae
Also called: Lanceolate Helcystogramma Moth, Lanceolate Helcystogramma
The lanceolate moth has a wingspan of about 13 to 15 millimetres. It lives in the United States, ranging from Minnesota and Pennsylvania down to Maryland and Kentucky and west to Oklahoma and Kansas. Its larvae feed on grasses such as Elymus hystrix and spend the winter inside a rolled leaf.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Wingspan measures 13 to 15 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Larvae eat grasses, including Elymus hystrix.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The species overwinters as larvae inside a rolled leaf.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It is native to the United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 25 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Maryland, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Oklahoma, Illinois, Indiana.
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
Questions people ask
What do the larvae of the lanceolate moth eat?
The larvae feed on grasses such as Elymus hystrix.
Source: Wikipedia
Where is the lanceolate moth found?
It occurs in the United States from Minnesota and Pennsylvania down to Maryland and Kentucky, and west to Oklahoma and Kansas.
Source: Wikipedia
How does the lanceolate moth survive winter?
It overwinters in the larval stage inside a rolled leaf.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Gelechiidae)
Angoumois Grain MothSitotroga cerealellaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Black-smudged Chionodes MothChionodes mediofuscella
Inverse and Kimball's Dichomeris MothsDichomeris inversella
Pink-washed Aristotelia MothAristotelia roseosuffusella
White Stripe-backed MothArogalea cristifasciella
Burdock Seedhead MothMetzneria lappellaSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helcystogramma_hystricella
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-25 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-25.