Alsophila pometaria
Encyclopedia
The Fall Cankerworm is a moth
of the Geometridae family. It is found from Nova Scotia
west to Alberta
, south to Colorado
and California
.
The wingspan
is 26-32 mm for males. The females are wingless. Adults are on wing from fall to early winter.
The larvae feed on a large variety of deciduous trees and shrubs, including Ulmus, Fraxinus and Acer. Other recorded hosts include hackberry, oak, various members of the rose family, walnut and willow. The larvae are often considered a serious pest of many tree species.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Geometridae family. It is found from Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
west to Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, south to Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
and California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 26-32 mm for males. The females are wingless. Adults are on wing from fall to early winter.
The larvae feed on a large variety of deciduous trees and shrubs, including Ulmus, Fraxinus and Acer. Other recorded hosts include hackberry, oak, various members of the rose family, walnut and willow. The larvae are often considered a serious pest of many tree species.