Obscure Pondweed Moth

Parapoynx obscuralis · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Crambidae

Also called: American China-mark

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Obscure Pondweed Moth
Photo: Sue Carnahan, CC BY

Parapoynx obscuralis is a moth in the family Crambidae, also called the obscure pondweed moth or American china-mark. Its larvae live in water and feed on aquatic plants such as Vallisneria, Potamogeton and Nuphar. The species occurs across North America, from Nova Scotia down to Florida and west to Texas, reaching north into Wisconsin and Ontario.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Parapoynx obscuralis belongs to the moth family Crambidae.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

The larvae are aquatic and live on or near water plants.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

It is native to North America, recorded from eastern Canada to the southeastern United States and west to Texas and Wisconsin.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 32 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Virginia, Louisiana.

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

Obscure Pondweed Moth photo 2
Photo: Becca, CC BY
Obscure Pondweed Moth photo 3
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0
Obscure Pondweed Moth photo 4
Photo: Abby Darrah, CC BY
Obscure Pondweed Moth photo 5
Photo: Haley Daniels, CC BY

Questions people ask

What do the larvae of the obscure pondweed moth eat?

The larvae feed on aquatic plants such as Vallisneria, Potamogeton and Nuphar.

Source: Wikipedia

Same family (Crambidae)

Box Tree MothBox Tree MothCydalima perspectalisDamages trees, gardens or cropsCelery Leaftier MothCelery Leaftier MothUdea rubigalisDamages trees, gardens or cropsElegant Grass-veneerElegant Grass-veneerMicrocrambus elegansHawaiian Beet Webworm MothHawaiian Beet Webworm MothSpoladea recurvalisDamages trees, gardens or cropsGarden Grass-veneerGarden Grass-veneerChrysoteuchia culmellaDamages trees, gardens or cropsBluegrass Webworm MothBluegrass Webworm MothParapediasia teterrellusDamages trees, gardens or crops

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parapoynx_obscuralis

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

Every fact on Bug FAQ comes from a named source (university extension sites, government agencies, GBIF, iNaturalist, Wikipedia). The source is linked next to each section. If we have no source for something, we leave it out.