Bug FAQWhite Slant-line
Tetracis cachexiata · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Geometridae
Also called: White Slant-line Moth
The white slant-line moth (Tetracis cachexiata) is a Geometridae species with forewings 19 to 26 mm long. Adults are active from May to early July across a broad North American range.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The white slant-line moth, scientific name Tetracis cachexiata, belongs to the Geometridae family.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Its forewings measure about 19 to 26 mm long.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
You’ll find it across North America, from the Atlantic provinces through the western provinces, down to northern Florida and east to Montana and northern Colorado.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
The caterpillars feed on a variety of trees and shrubs such as alders, birches, cherries, willows, lindens, elms, viburnums, firs, larches, pines and hemlocks.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Adults are on the wing from May through early July.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are on the wing from May through early July.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its native range covers much of North America, including Canada and the United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It can be confused with the yellow slant-line moth (Tetracis crocallata) or the confused Eusarca moth (Eusarca confusaria).
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 36 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York, Michigan, Connecticut, North Carolina, Vermont.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What do the larvae eat?
The larvae feed on many tree and shrub species, including alders, birches, cherries, willows, lindens, elms, viburnums and conifers such as fir, larch, pine and hemlock.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Geometridae)
Willow BeautyPeribatodes rhomboidaria
Pale BeautyCampaea perlataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Large Lace-border MothScopula limboundataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Riband WaveIdaea aversata
Yellow Shell MothCamptogramma bilineata
Large Maple Spanworm MothProchoerodes lineolaDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetracis_cachexiata
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.