Bug FAQSesame Leafroller
Antigastra catalaunalis · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Crambidae
Also called: Red-veined Pearl, Redvein Pearl, Spanish Dot
The sesame leafroller has a wingspan of about 19 to 22 mm. Adults have pale yellow forewings with ferruginous veins and margins, and yellow-whitish hindwings with a faint grey spot. The larvae feed on snapdragons, common toadflax, trumpetbush and other Scrophulariaceae and Pedaliaceae plants.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Forewings are pale yellow with ferruginous veins and margins, small dark spots, and whitish cilia; hindwings are yellow-whitish with ferruginous tinges and a cloudy grey costal spot.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Wingspan ranges from 19 to 22 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It lives in tropical and subtropical regions and can migrate to other areas.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Larvae feed on snapdragons, common toadflax, trumpetbush and other members of the Scrophulariaceae and Pedaliaceae families.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The species was first described by Duponchel in 1833.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Endemic to South Asia, the Malay Archipelago and Africa.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It belongs to the moth family Crambidae.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 12 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma, California, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What plants do sesame leafroller larvae eat?
The caterpillars feed on snapdragons, common toadflax, trumpetbush and other Scrophulariaceae and Pedaliaceae species.
Source: Wikipedia
Where is the sesame leafroller found?
It is native to tropical and subtropical areas of South Asia, the Malay Archipelago and Africa, but can appear elsewhere because it migrates.
Source: Wikipedia
What does the adult moth look like?
The forewings are pale yellow with ferruginous veins and margins, and the hindwings are yellow-whitish with a faint grey spot.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Crambidae)
Box Tree MothCydalima perspectalisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Celery Leaftier MothUdea rubigalisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Elegant Grass-veneerMicrocrambus elegans
Hawaiian Beet Webworm MothSpoladea recurvalisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Garden Grass-veneerChrysoteuchia culmellaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Bluegrass Webworm MothParapediasia teterrellusDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigastra_catalaunalis
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.