Spring Petrophila

Petrophila avernalis · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Crambidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Spring Petrophila
Photo: Jared Shorma, CC BY

Spring Petrophila is a moth in the Crambidae family. Adults have been seen flying from June through September.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Spring Petrophila belongs to the moth family Crambidae.

Source: Wikipedia

When you see it

Adults are on the wing from June to September.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 8 of 51 states and DC. Most records: New Mexico, Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, Arizona, Nebraska, South Dakota, Illinois.

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

Spring Petrophila photo 2
Photo: Laura Gaudette, CC BY
Spring Petrophila photo 3
Photo: Colin Croft, CC BY
Spring Petrophila photo 4
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0
Spring Petrophila photo 5
Photo: Wendy McCrady, CC BY

Questions people ask

When are Spring Petrophila adults active?

Adults have been recorded flying between June and September.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Crambidae)

Box Tree MothBox Tree MothCydalima perspectalisDamages trees, gardens or cropsCelery Leaftier MothCelery Leaftier MothUdea rubigalisElegant Grass-veneerElegant Grass-veneerMicrocrambus elegansHawaiian Beet Webworm MothHawaiian Beet Webworm MothSpoladea recurvalisDamages trees, gardens or cropsGarden Grass-veneerGarden Grass-veneerChrysoteuchia culmellaDamages trees, gardens or cropsBluegrass Webworm MothBluegrass Webworm MothParapediasia teterrellusDamages trees, gardens or crops

Sources

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

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

Text written 2026-10-26 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-26.

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.