Large lace-border
Its pale, cream-colored wings carry wavy tan lines and a small black dot on each of the four wings, giving a delicate, lace-like border.
| Where | Woodlands and edges east of the Rockies |
|---|---|
| Size | 20 to 31 mm wingspan |
| When | May to September |
The large lace-border is a pale, cream to white moth with wavy brown lines crossing all four wings and a small dark spot near the center of each one. The pattern varies, and some individuals show little dark shading at all.
Caterpillars feed on a range of low plants and shrubs, including apple, blueberry, black cherry, clover, and dandelion, and the moth produces more than one generation each year.
Traits
Habitat
Woodland
Colour
White, Brown, Black
Active
Night
To people
Comes to lights at night and rests low in vegetation by day; not a hazard to people.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
So close in its pale, faintly marked wings and overlapping size that the two species are notoriously difficult to separate without close examination.
Questions
Is the Large lace-border dangerous to people?
Comes to lights at night and rests low in vegetation by day; not a hazard to people.
When can you see the Large lace-border?
The Large lace-border can be seen from May to September, at night.
Plate retouched from a photo by DiegoH, CC BY 4.0, iNaturalist Licence
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Butterflies and moths›Geometer moths›Scopula
Last updated 2026-09-26. Every entry is checked against published sources.