Leopard moth
The leopard moth is a white moth covered in black spots, just like a leopard. Its fluffy white back has six black dots on it. Its caterpillar is a secret tunneller that lives inside the branches of trees.
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Fun facts
The caterpillar lives inside a branch for two or three years before it turns into a moth.
Fruit growers do not like it, because the caterpillars can damage fruit trees. Olive trees can even die from them.
The female's body alone can be 4.5 to 5 centimetres long.
The males have broad, feathery feelers.
It was brought to the United States by accident more than 140 years ago.
Most asked questions about Leopard moth
?What does the leopard moth caterpillar eat?
It eats wood, tunnelling inside the branches of fruit trees and other trees and bushes.
?Is the leopard moth harmful?
Not to people. But its caterpillars can damage fruit trees and even kill olive trees.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Zeuzera pyrina
- Named by
- Linnaeus, 1761
- Group
- Moths
- Family
- Cossidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Lepidoptera > Cossidae
- Lives on
- Europe, Africa, Asia, North America
- Also known as
- Wood leopard moth
Where the facts come from
- Zeuzera pyrina (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Rasbak. CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The round sticker of this bug is cut from the same picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
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