Oak-defoliator
Guides
Anisota virginiensis
pink-striped oakworm moth
Anisota virginiensis, the pink-striped oakworm moth, is a North American silk moth in the family Saturniidae. Adults display strong sexual dimorphism in wing coloration, with females showing purplish-red and ochre-yellow wings and males showing purplish-brown wings with a large transparent central area. The species is known for gregarious larval behavior and late-season defoliation of oak and other hardwood trees. It is widely distributed across eastern North America and is occasionally considered a minor forest pest, though late-season defoliation rarely causes significant tree mortality.
Hemileuca maia
buck moth
Hemileuca maia, commonly known as the buck moth, is a saturniid moth native to eastern North America. The species has expanded its range northward in recent decades. Adults are diurnal and do not feed. Larvae feed gregariously on oak foliage and possess urticating spines capable of causing painful reactions in humans and animals. The species has one generation per year, with eggs overwintering on host twigs. Recent taxonomic research has clarified the complex evolutionary relationships within the H. maia-nevadensis species complex, elevating several previously synonymized populations to species status.