Q: I found this large butterfly or moth on my Chaste tree. Can you tell me what it is? Do I need to worry about it eating my tree?

A: The large insect you found is actually a moth, which I believe to be the Imperial moth. As an adult, moths and butterflies are generally only seeking nectar from the flowers and they are not chewing on leaves. You do not need to worry about moths or butterflies eating the leaves of your tree. The larvae or caterpillar of butterflies or moths are the ones eating the leaves of vegetable and ornamental plants. We often try to control the moth larvae because they have a tendency to feed on vegetables and lawn grass. At the same time, we turn a blind eye to the butterfly caterpillars as we know they are important pollinators. However, many of us do not know the difference between butterfly and moth larvae and may be killing the caterpillars we should be allowing to live. These larvae feed on oak, maple, pine, sycamore, sweet gum and sassafras along with many other plants. The caterpillars of this size usually do little damage as they are seldom gregarious, which means they are not found in large groups. Large groups of larvae can defoliate a limb or tree quite readily. But these large, lumbering caterpillars eat slowly and are easy for prey to capture so many never reach the adult stage.

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