Alfalfa looper
Autographa californica
The alfalfa looper is a grey-brown night moth from western North America. Its green caterpillar is called a looper, because it walks by arching its middle up into a loop. It is one of the least picky eaters around.
Lives in
Western North America, from British Columbia to Baja California and east to Manitoba and New Mexico
Wingspan
3.6 to 4.2 cm (1.4 to 1.7 in)
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. It cannot bite or sting people, so you can watch it up close.
What does it eat?
Its caterpillars eat a huge range of plants, from clover and alfalfa to cabbages, carrots, tomatoes and pumpkins.
How big is it?
How wide are its wings?
🍚wings as wide as 7 grains of rice in a row⚽could fly across a whole football pitch in 27 seconds
How big is Alfalfa looper compared to YOU?
Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.
How fast is it?
A person walking about 5 km/h (3.1 mph)
A kid running fast about 13 km/h (8.1 mph)
Alfalfa looper about 14 km/h (8.7 mph)
A grown-up on a bike about 25 km/h (16 mph)
cool stuff
Fun facts
1
Its caterpillars have been found eating plants from more than 25 different plant families.
2
The moths fly from July to October, depending on where they live.
3
Its scientific name californica means from California.
you asked
Most asked questions about Alfalfa looper
?What does the alfalfa looper eat?
Its caterpillars eat many plants, including alfalfa, cabbages, tomatoes and many garden flowers.
?How big is the alfalfa looper moth?
Its wingspan is about 36 to 42 millimetres.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Autographa californica
- Named by
- Speyer, 1875
- Group
- Moths
- Family
- Noctuidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Lepidoptera > Noctuidae
- Lives on
- North America
Where the facts come from
- Autographa californica (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Peggy Greb, USDA Agricultural Research Service, United States. CC BY 3.0 us, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
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