Lesser Cornstalk Borer Moth

Elasmopalpus lignosella · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Pyralidae

Also called: Lesser cornstalk borer

Damages trees, gardens or crops. The larvae tunnel into plant crowns, weakening or killing seedlings and crops.

Lesser Cornstalk Borer Moth — Photo: Jake McCumber, CC BY

Adults have a wingspan of about 17 to 25 mm and are brownish with narrow, elongated forewings; males are yellow-ochre to light brown while females are darker, and the hindwings are whitish with gray-brown edges. They occur from the southern United States through Mexico, Central and South America and the Bahamas, and the larvae feed on many grasses and important crops, tunneling into crowns and often killing young plants.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Adults are brownish with narrow, elongated forewings that have slanted outer edges. Male forewings range from yellow-ochre to light brown; females are dark brown, and hindwings are whitish with gray-brown margins.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

The wingspan measures between 17 and 25 mm.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

It lives from the southern United States down through Mexico, Central America, South America and the Bahamas.

Source: Wikipedia

What it eats

Larvae eat many plants, preferring grasses, and have been recorded on beans, beets, cabbage, melons, corn, peas, peanuts, peppers, rice, wheat, sorghum, soy, sugarcane, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and many other crops. They also feed on a wide range of other plants besides those listed.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

Its native range includes the southern United States, Mexico, Central and South America, and the Bahamas.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 27 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, California, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Oklahoma, North Carolina, South Carolina.

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Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.

Source: GBIF

Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist

Months it is reported in the US

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Source: GBIF

More photos

Lesser Cornstalk Borer Moth photo 2 — Photo: Annika Lindqvist, CC BY

Lesser Cornstalk Borer Moth photo 3 — Photo: Sam Kieschnick, CC BY

Lesser Cornstalk Borer Moth photo 4 — Photo: Rosario Douglas, CC BY

Lesser Cornstalk Borer Moth photo 5 — Photo: Annika Lindqvist, CC BY

Questions people ask

How does this moth damage my garden?

The larvae tunnel into plant crowns, weakening or killing seedlings and crops.

Source: Wikipedia

What crops can the larvae feed on?

They have been recorded on beans, beets, cabbage, melons, corn, peas, peanuts, peppers, rice, wheat, sorghum, soy, sugarcane, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and many other plants.

Source: Wikipedia

Where is this moth found?

It occurs from the southern United States through Mexico, Central and South America and the Bahamas.

Source: Wikipedia

What do the adult moths look like?

Adults are brownish with narrow, elongated forewings; males are yellow-ochre to light brown, females are dark brown, and hindwings are whitish with gray-brown margins.

Source: Wikipedia