Meet the Milkweed Tiger Moth, a striking insect with vibrant caterpillars. Join us on a journey to uncover the secrets of this charming moth species, from its distinctive appearance to its fascinating behaviors and life cycle.
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Erebidae
Subfamily: Arctiinae
Genus: Euchaetes
Milkweed tiger moth appearance
The milkweed tiger moth or milkweed tussock moth is a member of the tiger moth family. It has a distinctive appearance in both its larval and adult stages. As an adult moth, the species has unmarked pale gray or brown wings and a fuzzy yellowish body with a row of black spots on the abdomen. It owns a wingspan of about approximately 3.2-4.3 cm.
Compared to the adult moths, its caterpillar is more vibrant. It is covered in dense tufts of black, orange, and white hairs, making it striking and easily recognizable. These colors serve as a warning signal to predators. The larvae’s fuzzy body can cause an uncomfortable rash if you touch them by hand.
Habitat
This insect inhabits regions stretching from southern Canada through to Texas and Florida in North America.
Diet
The milkweed tiger moth primarily eats milkweeds and dogbanes. The larvae of this species feed on the leaves of these plants, specifically on the leaves of Asclepias species, such as common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca). They also occasionally consume dogbane (Apocynum spp.). By consuming these plants, they acquire toxic cardiac glycosides that make them unpalatable to predators.
The adult moths feed on nectar from flowers. They do not feed on these plants but instead use their tymbal organs to emit ultrasonic sounds to deter bats, a primary predator.
Life cycle
When the time comes, the male milkweed tiger moths use their tymbal organs to produce ultrasonic clicks to deter bats and attract females.
After mating, females lay their pale gray eggs in masses on the undersides of milkweed leaves. The larvae hatch from eggs and appear slightly hairy and gray. They feed in groups, skeletonizing whole leaves, leaving lacy leaf remnants.
As they mature, the larvae develop tufts of black, white, and orange setae (hairs) and become more solitary. They can grow up to 35 mm in length. They then form gray, felted cocoons with hairs from their bodies, which they use for overwintering in the pupal stage. Finally, the adult moths emerge.
The lifespan of the adult milkweed tiger moths is not known yet, but they are active from late spring to early autumn. They have a one-generation-per-year cycle in the north and two or more generations in the south.
