Cabbage Looper

Adults are night-flying moths with brown, mottled fore wings marked in the center with a small, silver figure eight-like spot. Their eggs are small, ridged, round, and greenish-white. The eggs hatch into larvae that are green with white stripes running the length of their bodies. The caterpillar has three pairs of slender legs near its head and then three pairs of thick prolegs near the end of its body. It moves in a characteristic looping motion, alternately stretching forward and arching its back as it brings the back prolegs close to its front legs.

The caterpillar is about 1.25 inches long when fully grown. Eggs are deposited singly or in small clusters on either leaf surface, although more are found on the lower leaf surface. Populations tend to be highest during the late spring and summer months, and in some years in the late fall. Cabbage cannot survive prolonged cold weather. The insect remains active and reproduces throughout the winter months only in the southern part of Florida (south of Orlando). In central Florida, cabbage looper populations peak during early fall and again during late spring. Cabbage looper larvae damage plants by chewing holes in leaves. Smaller larvae remain on the lower leaf surface, while larger larvae produce larger holes throughout the leaf.

For control products and more information please see our Caterpillars and Moths Control page.