3/2/2024 0 Comments Rosy maple moth wiki![]() Wow! What an emergence for Brood X! While I enjoyed the periodical cicadas for the most part, I am happy to have a bit of reprieve from the noise. Virginia Museum of Natural History, Martinsville, VA. A field guide to moths of eastern North America. For additional ideas on how to help local moths, check out our article on Bewitching Butterflies and Moths with Fall and Winter Habitat. Reducing outdoor lighting, particularly during the summer when the adults are active and reducing pesticide use in the yard will also help. To attract and support rosy maple moths to your yard, consider planting maple trees particularly red maple ( Acer rubrum ) and sugar maple ( Acer saccharum ). Green-striped mapleworm by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren CC BY 2.0 It sometimes can be confused with the pink prominent moth ( Hyparpax aurora ) which has different markings but similar colors. Therefore, leaf litter can be an important cover. The mature caterpillars will pupate and overwinter underground. As they age and molt, the older caterpillars will feed alone. Rosy maple moth caterpillars are known as green-striped mapleworms. It takes the eggs about two weeks to hatch, and the young caterpillars will feed in groups together. Following mating, females lay eggs the next day in groups of 10-30 on leaves of their host plants (usually maples or occasional oaks). Adults often emerge in the late afternoon and mate at night. In Maryland, adults are typically seen at the beginning of May through much of the summer. While the caterpillars feed on maples and oaks, the adults do not feed. Occasionally, it will also lay its eggs on oak trees. It lives in deciduous forests with abundant maples, its host (caterpillar food) plant. The rosy maple moth can be found across the eastern United States and in parts of adjacent regions of Canada. They have two, large antennae that stick up and a reddish orange head. The caterpillars are light green with darker green horizontal stripes and have a few rows of small black dots. While their colorful appearance really seems to stand out, the color provides camouflage on samaras (fruits) of red maples. The wingspan of female rosy maple moths can get up to two inches in length. Their legs are reddish-pink and the feathery antennae are a golden coloration. Rosy maple moth adults have brilliant pink and bright yellow markings. Have you seen one of Maryland’s showiest moth species, the rosy maple moth? This colorful moth is one of the smaller silk moths in the family Saturniidae. Adult moths will play dead when handled.Adult rosy maple moth by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren CC BY 2.0 ![]() Adults of this species are known as "rosy maple moths" and are hairy with beautiful combinations of yellow and pink on the wings and a yellow body they are often admired for their beauty. Historically, outbreaks of this native caterpillar have defoliated sugar and red maples in eastern Canada and the northeastern United States. In those locations, oak may be defoliated twice in the same season. In the southern portion of its range, there are two generations per year (potentially 3) and caterpillars may be active from May to November. In the northeast, one generation per year is recorded. Caterpillars are often found in trees particularly in late July and early August but sometimes as late as September in New England. These horns are longer than the additional, smaller black spines that are found on the rest of the body of the caterpillar. On the thorax of the caterpillar (second thoracic segment), two black horns or projections are present. When caterpillars are mature, they can be up to an inch and a half in length with reddish heads and a pale green body that has 7 greenish-black stripes running lengthwise. After adult moths become active in the spring, yellow eggs are laid on the underside of leaves over a very extended period of time. Forewings are pink with a yellow colored band in the center. ![]() The adult moth is approximately 1 inch in length.
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