Showy Holomelina

Virbia ostenta · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Erebidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Showy Holomelina
Photo: Ken-ichi Ueda, CC BY

Males have forewings about 17.1 mm long and females about 18.5 mm long. Larvae can be raised on dandelion species and on Lactuca floridana.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

Male forewings measure roughly 17.1 mm, while females are about 18.5 mm long.

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

Larvae have been successfully reared on dandelion species and on Lactuca floridana.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 3 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Arizona, New Mexico, Indiana.

Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.

Source: GBIF

Months it is reported in the US

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Source: GBIF

More photos

Showy Holomelina photo 2
Photo: Matt Muir, CC BY
Showy Holomelina photo 3
Photo: Sue Carnahan, CC BY
Showy Holomelina photo 4
Photo: Laura Gaudette, CC BY
Showy Holomelina photo 5
Photo: River Ahlquist, CC BY

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/Virbia_ostenta

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

Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.

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.