Bug FAQWhite Triangle Tortrix
Clepsis persicana · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Tortricidae
Also called: White-triangle Tortrix Moth
The white triangle tortrix is a small moth with orange-basal forewings that darken to a purplish shade toward the edge, which is pale in color.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Forewings start orange near the body and become darker and purplish toward the outer edge, which is pale. The larva is slender, very active, with a yellow head and wide, faint greyish stripes along its body.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Male forewings measure about 8.5 to 10.5 mm, while females are slightly larger at 10 to 11 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
How to get rid of it
No control measures have been needed for green needleworms.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It lives in coniferous and mixed coniferous forests.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Larvae feed on a wide variety of deciduous and coniferous trees, webbing leaves and feeding inside the calyx.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Pupation occurs under the bark of the host tree or among fallen leaves at the tree base.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are on the wing from June to August, producing one generation each year.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
In North America it ranges from Alaska and British Columbia across to Newfoundland, south to Virginia, and west to California.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It is a tortricid moth known as the white triangle tortrix or green needleworm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 29 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Alaska, Michigan, Maine, New York, Vermont, Minnesota, Colorado, California.
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 adult white triangle tortrix moths?
Adults are active from June through August.
Source: Wikipedia
What trees do the larvae feed on?
They eat a wide range of both deciduous and coniferous trees, webbing the leaves and feeding inside the calyx.
Source: Wikipedia
Do I need to control them?
Control measures have not been required for this species.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Tortricidae)
Oblique-banded Leafroller MothChoristoneura rosaceanaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Garden TortrixClepsis peritanaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Common MarbleSyricoris lacunanaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Red-banded Leafroller MothArgyrotaenia velutinanaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Light Brown Apple MothEpiphyas postvittanaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Aster and Reddish Eucosma Moths and AlliesEucosma parmatanaSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clepsis_persicana
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.