Bug FAQPlantain moth
Scopula rubraria · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Geometridae
The plantain moth has a wingspan of about 20 mm. Its wings are straw-coloured with distinctive zigzag markings. Caterpillars feed on narrow-leaved plantain, the New Zealand endemic plantain, and can be raised on lucerne.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The moth’s wings are straw coloured with zigzag markings.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Its wingspan measures roughly 20 mm (0.79 in).
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Caterpillars feed on Plantago lanceolata, the endemic Plantago spathulata, and have been raised on Medicago sativa (lucerne).
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 1 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What do plantain moth caterpillars eat?
They feed on narrow-leaved plantain, the New Zealand endemic plantain, and can be raised on lucerne.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Geometridae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scopula_rubraria
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.