Tropical Warehouse Moth vs Waved Sphinx Moth

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Tropical Warehouse Moth Waved Sphinx Moth
Scientific Name Ephestia cautella Ceratomia undulosa
Order Lepidoptera Lepidoptera
Family Pyralidae Sphingidae
Size 8-12 mm body; 15-22 mm wingspan 75-100 mm
Habitat Indoors Woodlands
Diet Fruit Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions Tropical and subtropical regions worldwide Eastern North America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Tropical Warehouse Moth

A common pest of stored products in tropical and subtropical warehouses. Its larvae produce frass and webbing that contaminate large quantities of stored commodities.

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Did You Know?

It is the most economically damaging moth pest of stored cocoa beans in West Africa.

Waved Sphinx Moth

A large gray hawk moth with wavy dark lines across the forewings, providing superb bark camouflage. It is one of the most commonly encountered sphingids at lights in eastern North America.

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Did You Know?

The waved sphinx is so common at porch lights in the eastern US that it is often the first sphinx moth most people encounter.