Pearly-winged Lichen Moth

Crambidia casta · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Erebidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Pearly-winged Lichen Moth
Photo: Colin Croft, CC BY

The Pearly-winged Lichen Moth has a wingspan of about 30 mm. Its range extends from the eastern United States and Canada westward to the Rocky Mountains and down to central Arizona and New Mexico. The caterpillars feed on lichens.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

Wingspan is roughly 30 mm.

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

Larvae eat lichens.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 20 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Wyoming, Montana, Michigan, Colorado, North Dakota, Washington, South Dakota, Idaho.

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

JFMAMJJASOND

Source: GBIF

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 acreaDamages trees, gardens or crops

Sources

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

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