White slant-line

(Tetracis cachexiata)

Hodges #

6964

 
white slant-line
Photo by Lisa Germann
     

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List

not listed

 
NatureServe

NNR - Unranked

 
Minnesota

not listed

 
     
     
     
     
     

Description

The forewing is white with a pale orange, slanted, postmedial line that extends from the middle of the inner margin to the costal margin near the apex. It is otherwise unmarked. The hindwing is white and unmarked.

The caterpillar is a stick mimic. The second thoracic segment is conspicuously thickened, giving the caterpillar the appearance of a broken twig.

 

Size

1 3 16 to 3¼ wingspan

 

Similar Species

Yellow slant-line (Tetracis crocallata) wings are pale tan, yellowish-white, creamy yellow, or orangish-yellow. The postmedial line is dark brown and bold. There is a small dark discal spot on all wings. The wings are dusted with dark scales. Hindwings of the second brood have a pale postmedial line.

Habitat

Deciduous woodlands and forests

Ecology

Season

One brood: Late May to late July

 

Behavior

 

 

Life Cycle

 

 

Larva Hosts

Deciduous trees and shrubs and occasionally conifers.

 

Adult Food

 

Distribution

Distribution Map

 

Sources

7, 21, 24, 29, 30, 71, 75, 82, 83.

Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu, 9/12/2025).

9/12/2025    
     

Occurrence

Common

Taxonomy

Order

Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths)

Superfamily

Geometroidea (geometrid and swallowtail moths)

Family

Geometridae (geometrid moths)

Subfamily

Ennominae (typical geometers)

Tribe

Ourapterygini (=Ennomini)

Genus

Tetracis (slant-lines)

   

Tribe
The genus Tetracis was formerly placed in the tribe Ourapterygini. A recent morphological analysis of the tribe Ennomini (Beljaev E., 2008) proposed synonymizing Ennomini and Ourapterygini. The proposal has not been universally accepted. Most sources do not include the rank of tribe in their taxonomic tree. Of those that do, iNaturalist.org places Tetracis in the tribe Ennomini, ITIS and BugGuide.net place it in the tribe Ourapterygini.

   

Subordinate Taxa

 

   

Synonyms

Tetracis lorata

   

Common Names

white slant

white slant-line

white slant-line moth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Lisa Germann

white slant-line

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Other Videos

White Slant-line (Tetracis cachexiata)
Carl Barrentine

About

Published on Jun 12, 2013

This lovely White-Slant-line Moth (Tetracis cachexiata) naps in the protective shadows of its leafy Eden. Photographed at the Rydell NWR, Minnesota (11 June 2013).

 

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Lisa Germann
5/25/2020

Location: Dakota County

white slant-line

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