Spiderling Plume Moth

Megalorhipida leucodactylus · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Pterophoridae

Also called: Plume moth

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Spiderling Plume Moth
Photo: Joey Bom, CC BY

The spiderling plume moth is found throughout tropical regions around the world. Its caterpillars feed on a variety of plants such as Boerhavia diffusa, Acacia neovernicosa, and Amaranthus.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Megalorhipida leucodactyla belongs to the plume-moth family and occurs in pantropical areas.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

This species has a pantropical distribution, meaning it is native to tropical regions worldwide.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 6 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Florida, Texas, Arizona, Hawaii, California, New Mexico.

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

Source: GBIF

Months it is reported in the US

JFMAMJJASOND

Source: GBIF

More photos

Spiderling Plume Moth photo 2
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0
Spiderling Plume Moth photo 3
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0
Spiderling Plume Moth photo 4
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0
Spiderling Plume Moth photo 5
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0

Same family (Pterophoridae)

Morning-glory Plume MothMorning-glory Plume MothEmmelina monodactylaWhite Plume MothWhite Plume MothPterophorus pentadactylaDamages trees, gardens or cropsBrown Silver-lineBrown Silver-linePetrophora chlorosataGrape and Sheppard's Plume MothsGrape and Sheppard's Plume MothsGeina periscelidactylusDamages trees, gardens or cropsYarrow Plume MothYarrow Plume MothGillmeria pallidactylaDamages trees, gardens or cropsPlain, Elliott's, and Habeck's Plume MothsPlain, Elliott's, and Habeck's Plume MothsHellinsia homodactylus

Sources

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

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

Text written 2026-10-27 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-27.

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.