Indian Meal Moth

Indian Meal Moth (Plodia interpunctella) Adult Indian meal moths have a wingspan of 5/8- to 3/4-inches. The wings are a burnished copper, almost purple color with a broad gray band near where they attach to the body. Mature larvae are 1/2-inch long and dirty white, pink, brown, or light green. Adult females lay 100 to 400 eggs at night. The larvae then require 13 to 28 days to mature. The lifecycle of the Indian meal moth is typically completed in 40 to 55 days. There are usually four to six generations per year depending on the food supply and temperature. These moths usually overwinter as larvae.

The adults are more active at dusk and are attracted to light. These common stored food pests lay silk webbing over the surface of the materials upon which they feed.

Photo courtesy of Clemson University Department of Entomology, Soils & Plant Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service.

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