It remains in this form for about 10 days. The adults emerge, leaving the pupal cases behind, and begin to search for mates. The tan male moths are about 1 inch long and are strong fliers. The males search for female moths in a rapid zigzag pattern. Female moths are larger, white and cannot fly.
Females emit a potent sex attractant which lures the male moths.
Eggs are laid shortly after mating, often on tree trunks. The adult gypsy moth does not feed. A number of natural enemies of the gypsy moth are active during all of the insect's life stages. For example, parasites and predators can effectively reduce gypsy moth numbers by 10 to 60 percent in a given year, depending on weather conditions and the health of the current generation of gypsy moths. Several natural enemies are listed below.