The orange striped oakworm may appear at the same time as the spiny oakworm. It occurs on birches, oak, maple, elm, honeylocust, etc. The larvae is yellowish and black striped and moderately covered with fine, white hairs. Young larvae feed as skeletonizers, while older larvae will devour the entire leaf with the exception of the leaf stalk. Moths are active during June and July, and the larvae can be found feeding in trees during late July and August.
Most sources indicate one generation per year.
A few oak leaf feeding caterpillars are present every year and some frass may be noticed on patios, driveways or around pool edges, but populations do not reach levels that produce noticeable leaf losses. In other years, the populations are very high and during these years the trees will have noticeable leaf loss. Trees in the northeast part of the country often suffer defoliation from gypsy moth larvae, and they seem to survive quite well. In fact, the ground beetle to the left is one of the caterpillar hunter group and it has been reported on trees that are known to have caterpillar infestations. In those years when natural controls do not work and large populations develop, people often want to treat with insecticides.