Bug FAQStigmella ceanothi
Stigmella ceanothi · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Nepticulidae
Stigmella ceanothi is a tiny moth in the Nepticulidae family. Its wingspan ranges from about 3 to 7 millimetres. The larvae mine the leaves of the plant Ceanothus divaricatus in California, and adults appear in spring and early fall.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
This species belongs to the family Nepticulidae.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
The adult moth’s wingspan is between 3.2 and 6.6 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in the state of California in the United States.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
The caterpillars feed on the leaves of Ceanothus divaricatus, creating leaf mines.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
There are two, possibly three, generations each year.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its known range is California, United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 7 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Massachusetts, Oregon, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What do the larvae of Stigmella ceanothi eat?
The larvae mine the leaves of Ceanothus divaricatus.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Nepticulidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stigmella_ceanothi
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.