NMW: Carrot Seed Moth

It's National Moth Week, and while Urban Dragon Hunters is primarily about dragonflies, we are keen on many other insect taxa as well. Why not try to feature a cool moth every day this week?

Day 5's moth is one that is not native to North America. The Carrot Seed Moth, a.k.a., Greenish-Yellow Sitochroa Moth (Sitochroa palealis, Hodges #4986.1) is a European/Palearctic moth first recorded on this side of the pond in the Upper Midwest in 2002. The larvae feed on umbellifers, especially the well-established non-native Queen Anne's Lace or wild carrot, Daucus carota. The caterpillars are more conspicuous than the ordinary-looking adults, as they weave themselves into the seed heads of the plants; they can be found by searching for these frass baskets.

Photo by Julie Craves, all rights reserved.