Grapeleaf skeletoniser
The grapeleaf skeletoniser is a small black moth with a red or orange collar, like a tiny scarf. Its yellow and black striped caterpillars munch grape leaves together in a group. They eat the soft parts and leave only the thin veins, like a leaf skeleton.
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Fun facts
It is the only moth whose caterpillars eat grape leaves in a big group together.
The caterpillars often line up side by side under a leaf, like children in a row.
Its family can make a poison that keeps hungry birds away.
The grown-up moths live only a few days. They fly both in the day and at night.
The eggs are lemon yellow and shaped like tiny capsules.
Most asked questions about Grapeleaf skeletoniser
?Is the grapeleaf skeletoniser caterpillar dangerous?
Its hairs can cause an itchy rash for a few days. Just look and do not touch it.
?Why is it called a skeletoniser?
The caterpillars eat the soft green parts of a leaf and leave only the veins, so the leaf looks like a skeleton.
?What does the grapeleaf skeletoniser eat?
The caterpillars eat grape leaves and Virginia creeper. The moths visit flowers.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Harrisina americana
- Group
- Moths
- Family
- Zygaenidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Lepidoptera > Zygaenidae
- Lives on
- North America
- Also known as
- Grapeleaf skeletonizer
Where the facts come from
- Grapeleaf skeletonizer (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 Shaina Noggle of Goth Moths. 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 hello@bugwiki.app and we will fix it.
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