Bug FAQPurple Carrot-seed Moth
Depressaria depressana · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Depressariidae
Also called: Lost Flat-body
The purple carrot-seed moth has a wingspan of about 14 to 20 mm and belongs to the family Depressariidae. It lives across most of Europe, the Near East, North Africa, the eastern Palearctic, and has been recorded in North America since 2009. Adults fly from March to May, and the species can produce one to three generations depending on the region.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Depressaria depressana, also called the purple carrot-seed moth or Blunt's flat-body, is a member of the Depressariidae family.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
The moth’s wingspan ranges from 14 to 20 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
The larvae feed on wild carrots, parsley relatives, parsnip, and other umbellifers such as Seseli and Peucedanum oreoselinum.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Adults are on the wing from March to May. In the north there is one generation per year; in the northern Caucasus up to two, and in southern Ukraine up to three generations.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are active during the spring months of March through May.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its native range includes most of Europe, the Near East, North Africa, and the eastern part of the Palearctic realm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 20 of 51 states and DC. Most records: New York, Vermont, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: introduced in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What plants do the larvae eat?
The caterpillars feed on wild carrots, parsley relatives, parsnip, and other umbelliferous plants.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Depressariidae)
Goldenrod Leaffolder MothAgonopterix pulvipennella
Dotted Leaftier MothPsilocorsis reflexella
Schlaeger's Fruitworm MothAntaeotricha schlaegeri
Poison hemlock mothAgonopterix alstroemeriana
Pale Gray Bird-dropping MothAntaeotricha leucillanaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Dotted Antaeotricha MothAntaeotricha humilisSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depressaria_depressana
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.