Bug FAQMaple Spanworm Moth
Ennomos magnaria · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Geometridae
Also called: Maple Spanworm
The maple spanworm moth has a wingspan of about 4 to 6 centimeters and looks like a dead autumn leaf. Adults fly from July through early November, are active at night, and can be seen resting on buildings during the day. It occurs across southern Canada and the northern United States, reaching down to Florida, Louisiana, and west to California.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Adults look like a brown autumn leaf, which helps them blend into their surroundings.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
The wingspan ranges from 43 to 60 millimeters.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Moths are nocturnal and often rest on walls or other structures during daylight hours.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Caterpillars feed on the leaves of many trees, including alder, ash, basswood, birch, elm, hickory, maple, oak, and poplar.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
There is one generation per year, with adults on the wing from July to early November.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are active from midsummer through late fall.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It is native to southern Canada and the northern United States. Its range extends south to Florida and Louisiana and west to California.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It belongs to the Geometridae family and is also called the notched-wing moth.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 45 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Michigan, Massachusetts, New York, Vermont, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Connecticut.
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
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
When can I expect to see adult maple spanworm moths?
Adults appear from July through early November.
Source: Wikipedia
What do the caterpillars eat?
They feed on the leaves of a variety of hardwood trees such as oak, maple, and birch.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Geometridae)
Willow BeautyPeribatodes rhomboidaria
Pale BeautyCampaea perlataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Large Lace-border MothScopula limboundataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Riband WaveIdaea aversata
Yellow Shell MothCamptogramma bilineata
Large Maple Spanworm MothProchoerodes lineolaDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ennomos_magnaria
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.