Moths of North Carolina

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Sole representative of Galacticidae in NC

67 NC Records

Homadaula anisocentra Meyrick, 1922 - Mimosa Webworm Moth

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Taxonomy

Superfamily:
Galacticoidea

Family:
Galacticidae

Subfamily:
[Galacticinae]

Tribe:
[Galacticini]

P3 Number:
49a0001

MONA Number:
2353.00

Species Status: The Mimosa Webworm Moth is native to Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and mainland China (Heppner, 2011) and can be a minor pest on ornamental trees in this country.

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions:

Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD

Adult Markings: The adults are easily recognizable based on their silvery gray forewings that are spotted with numerous round black spots.

Wingspan: ca. 14 mm

Adult Structural Features: Heppner (2011) has illustrations of the male and female genitalia.

Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.

Immatures and Development: The females lay clusters of eggs on Honey Locust or Mimosa and the caterpillars feed communally in silken webs that are spun over the tree's foliage. The larvae are leaf skeletonizers and can eventually cause significant damage and browning of leaflets within the webs (Webster and St. George, 1947). The first generation caterpillars pupate within the webs, and the females that emerge tend to preferentially oviposit in or near the webs. As a result, the second and third generations often expand the size of the webbed nest seasonally. It is not uncommon for a nest to contain larvae with two size cohorts that represent two broods that share a nest. Second and third generation larvae may also create new webs away from the first-generation webs. The mature larvae are light brown with five longitudinal white stripes. Larvae in the final brood leave the webs on silk strands, then pupate and overwinter beneath bark or in other cryptic places.

Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.

Distribution in North Carolina

Distribution: This species was introduced into North America around the Washington, DC area sometime around 1940 (Clarke, 1943) and has since spread throughout much of the eastern US and portions of California (Heppner, 2011). In North Carolina it is locally common in the Piedmont, and seen occasionally in the western Coastal Plain and the lower valleys in the mountains.

County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.


Flight Dates: High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft. Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft. Piedmont (Pd) Coastal Plain (CP) Click on graph to enlarge
Immature Dates: High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft. Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft. Piedmont (Pd) Coastal Plain (CP) Click on graph to enlarge
Flight Comments: Northern populations typically have two or three overlapping broods per year beginning in June, while populations near the Gulf Coast can have three or more broods, with the adults becoming active as early as April. Pupae in the final brood overwinter, and the adults emerge following the spring leaf-out. As of 2022, we have adult records that extend from late April through late September.

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: This species uses Honey Locust and Mimosa as hosts and is typically associated with urban and residential area where these species are often planted as ornamentals. They also commonly occur is disturbed or early successional habitats such as roadside habitats, abandoned farmland, fencerows and the like. In some areas of the range, the Mimosa Webworm can be minor pests on ornamental trees where they cause significant browning of the foliage.

Larval Host Plants: Mimosa (Albizia julibrissin) is the native host plant and the likely source of introduction of this species to the United States. After its introduction, H. anisocentra quickly shifted to using Honey Locust (Gleditsia triacanthos) (Baker, 1972), which has been confirmed as a host in North Carolina. - View

Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to blacklights and the conspicuous webs are easy to spot on the host plants.

Wikipedia

Status in North Carolina

Natural Heritage Program Status: Exotic

Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR SNA

State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.

Comments: Introduced from East Asia

Photo Gallery for Homadaula anisocentra - Mimosa Webworm Moth

79 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.

	Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2025-08-25 Wake Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Melody McMichael on 2025-08-09 Forsyth Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2025-07-21 Mecklenburg Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2025-07-21 Mecklenburg Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Stephen Dunn on 2024-07-29 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2024-05-30 Durham Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2023-08-16 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-21 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-11 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Lior Carlson, Richard Teper on 2022-09-06 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Dean Furbish and Joy Wiggins on 2022-09-03 Wake Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-07-30 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Lior Carlson, Becky Watkins, Richard Teper, Stephen Dunn on 2022-07-23 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-07-14 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-07-11 Alamance Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-07-11 Guilford Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-07-02 Guilford Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-06-21 Guilford Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-06-11 Guilford Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-06-04 Guilford Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-06-02 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-05-28 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-05-20 Guilford Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-05-17 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-05-07 Guilford Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-05-04 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-05-03 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-04-25 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2021-09-03 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2021-08-27 Orange Co. Comment: