''Speranza pustularia'', the lesser maple spanworm, is a
moth of the family
Geometridae. Adults are on wing from May to July in the south and from June to August in the north. There is one generation per year.
Description
Adults have white wings with wavy orange-yellow lines across both the forewings and hindwings. These lines are often thicker at the top-most edge of the forewing. The
wingspan is 18–27 mm.
Range and Habitat
The lesser maple spanworm is found from
Nova Scotia to
Florida, west to
Mississippi, north to
North Dakota and
Saskatchewan. They are most common in deciduous and mixed forests.
Ecology
The larvae feed on the leaves of maple, especially ''
Acer rubrum.'' While ''A. rubrum'' is their primary food source, they may also feed on
Acer saccharum
''Acer saccharum'', the sugar maple, is a species of flowering plant in the soapberry and lychee family Sapindaceae. It is native to the hardwood forests of eastern Canada and eastern United States. Sugar maple is best known for being the prima ...
and
Acer saccharinum. Some have also been recorded on birch, cherry, poplar, ''
Abies'', ''
Tsuga'' and tamarack.
References
External links
Bug GuideImages
Macariini
Moths described in 1857
{{Macariini-stub