Bug FAQWhite-spotted Cankerworm Moth
Paleacrita merriccata · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Geometridae
Also called: White-Spotted Canker Worm
The white-spotted cankerworm moth is Paleacrita merriccata. Males have forewings 14 to 18 mm long, while females are wingless. It lives in eastern North America, recorded from Illinois to Texas, and adult males fly from January to May depending on latitude.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The species is called the white-spotted cankerworm moth, scientific name Paleacrita merriccata.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Male forewings measure between 14 and 18 mm. Females do not have wings.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in eastern North America.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adult males are on the wing in March-May in the north and in January-February in the south.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 29 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Connecticut, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi.
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
When can I see the adult moths?
Males fly in early spring, January to February in the southern part of their range and March to May farther north.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Geometridae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleacrita_merriccata
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-25 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-25.