Asteroid moth

Hodges #

10200

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List

not listed

NatureServe

NNR - Unranked

Minnesota

not listed

Description

Cucullia is a large genus of owlet moths with about 250 species worldwide, 36 species in North America north of Mexico. It is the only genus in the subfamily Cuculliinae. They are called hooded owlet moths due to a thick tuft of long hairs on the thorax that can be projected forward and curled over the head like a cowl or hood. Asteroid moth (Cucullia asteroides) is a common and widespread hooded owlet moth. It occurs east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and southern Canada. It is common in Minnesota.

Adults are ⅞″ to 1⅛″ (23 to 29 mm) long and have a wingspan of 1¾″ to 2¼″(44 to 56 mm).

The forewing is long, narrow, pointed at the tip, pale gray, and sometimes tinged with blue or violet. There is a brown to blackish splotch on the leading edge (costal margin), and another one on the inner margin that widens as it approaches the anal angle on the outer margin. The postmedial (PM) line absent except for a small crescent near the inner margin. There is a circular spot in the median area (orbicular spot) and a kidney-shaped spot at the end of the discal cell (reniform spot). Both spots have brown centers ringed with dull white and thinly outlined with brown. On some individuals these spots are barely discernible. The hindwing is nearly white with a narrow brown border on males, a broad brown border on females.

The caterpillar is stout, smooth, and up to 1¾″ (4.5 cm) long. It is usually green or yellowish-green, sometimes brown or purplish, with several thin, black or dark brown, longitudinal lines. There is a bright yellow stripe in the upper middle (middorsal stripe), often edged with white and bordered on each side with a thin black line. The breathing pores (spiracles) are white outlined with black. There are two thin lines in the subdorsal area, two in the supraspiracular area. In the spiracular area there is a broad line, yellow above and white below, bordered with thin black lines. Mature caterpillars are present from August to October.

Size

Total length: ⅞″ to 1⅛″ (23 to 29 mm)

Wingspan: 1¾″ to 2¼″ (44 to 56 mm)

Similar Species

Habitat

Fields and meadows, edges of forests and woodlands

Ecology

Season

One generation per year in Minnesota: Early July to mid-August

Behavior

When at rest the wings are folded over the body, the “hood” is curled over the head, and the front legs are stretched forward. It is well camouflaged, looking much like the twig on which it perches.

Life Cycle

Pupa overwinter in a cocoon underground

Larva Food/Hosts

Mostly flowers but also leaves of goldenrod and aster

Adult Food

Distribution

Sources

6, 7, 21, 22, 24, 27, 30, 75, 82, 83.

Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu. Accessed 10/15/2026).

Cucullia asteroides Guenée, 1852 in Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Abreu, C., Acero P, A., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (2026-08-26 XR). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgyy9

Quinn, Edward. M., and Ron Danielson. April 27, 2009. A Survey of Lepidoptera in Three Priority Areas of the Minnesota State Parks System. https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/eco/nongame/projects/consgrant_reports/2009
/2009_quinn_danielson.pdf.