Lobed Plume Moth

Dejongia lobidactylus · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Pterophoridae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Lobed Plume Moth
Photo: Teá Montagna, CC BY

The lobed plume moth has a wingspan of about 0.7 to 0.8 inches (17 to 20 mm). Adults appear from June through August and have dark cinnamon-brown forewings with a greyish-brown head marked by a white line over each eye. It lives in the northeastern United States and central Canada, where its larvae feed on the terminal buds of goldenrod (Solidago) species.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

The forewings are a dark cinnamon brown.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

The wingspan ranges from 17 to 20 mm (about 0.67 to 0.79 in).

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

Larvae feed on the terminal buds of Solidago (goldenrod) species.

Source: Wikipedia

Life cycle

Adults are on the wing from June to August.

Source: Wikipedia

When you see it

The moth is active during the summer months, specifically June through August.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 18 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Massachusetts, Vermont, New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Maine, Minnesota, Michigan.

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

Lobed Plume Moth photo 2
Photo: Teá Montagna, CC BY
Lobed Plume Moth photo 3
Photo: Kristof Zyskowski, CC BY
Lobed Plume Moth photo 4
Photo: Jason Hill, CC BY
Lobed Plume Moth photo 5
Photo: Thomas Irvine, CC BY

Questions people ask

When are lobed plume moths active?

Adults fly from June through August.

Source: Wikipedia

What do the larvae eat?

They feed on the terminal buds of goldenrod (Solidago) plants.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Pterophoridae)

Morning-glory Plume MothMorning-glory Plume MothEmmelina monodactylaWhite Plume MothWhite Plume MothPterophorus pentadactylaDamages trees, gardens or cropsBrown Silver-lineBrown Silver-linePetrophora chlorosataYarrow Plume MothYarrow Plume MothGillmeria pallidactylaDamages trees, gardens or cropsBelfrage's Plume MothBelfrage's Plume MothPselnophorus belfrageiSage Plume MothSage Plume MothAnstenoptilia marmarodactyla

Sources

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

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.

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.