Lesser Oak Dagger

Acronicta exilis · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Noctuidae

Also called: Exiled Dagger, Exiled Dagger Moth

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Lesser Oak Dagger
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0

Its caterpillars feed on oak trees (Quercus species).

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

You can find this species in Iowa, New York, Maryland, Arkansas and Delaware.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

It lives in habitats across those same states.

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

The larvae eat leaves of oak trees (Quercus).

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

The moth is native to North America, especially the listed U.S. states.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 25 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Maryland, New Jersey, Tennessee.

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

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Source: GBIF

More photos

Lesser Oak Dagger photo 2
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0
Lesser Oak Dagger photo 3
Photo: Laura Gaudette, CC BY
Lesser Oak Dagger photo 4
Photo: Paul Bedell, CC BY-SA
Lesser Oak Dagger photo 5
Photo: John P Friel, CC BY

Same family (Noctuidae)

Ipsilon Dart MothIpsilon Dart MothAgrotis ipsilonDamages trees, gardens or cropsFall Armyworm MothFall Armyworm MothSpodoptera frugiperdaDamages trees, gardens or cropsArmy Cutworm MothArmy Cutworm MothEuxoa auxiliarisDamages trees, gardens or cropsLarge Yellow UnderwingLarge Yellow UnderwingNoctua pronubaDamages trees, gardens or cropsSilver ΥSilver ΥAutographa gammaAmerican DaggerAmerican DaggerAcronicta americanaCan irritate skin

Sources

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

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

Text written 2026-10-26 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-26.

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.