Cabbage moth: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the cabbage moth lives – recorded in 19 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Mamestra brassicae
Group	Butterflies & moths
Found in	19 countries
Continents	Europe
Diet (main food)	tomato
Class	Insect
Order	Lepidoptera
Family	Noctuidae

Where does the cabbage moth live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the cabbage moth in 19 countries and territories across Europe.

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

What does a cabbage moth eat?

Wikidata lists the main food source of the cabbage moth as: tomato.

What kind of animal is the cabbage moth?

The cabbage moth (Mamestra brassicae) is an insect in the order Lepidoptera and the family Noctuidae, genus Mamestra. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the cabbage moth

The cabbage moth (Mamestra brassicae) is primarily known as a pest that is responsible for severe crop damage of a wide variety of plant species. The common name, cabbage moth, is a misnomer as the species feeds on many fruits, vegetables, and crops in the genus Brassica (i.e. cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts). Other notable host plants include tobacco, sunflower, and tomato, making this pest species particularly economically damaging.

The moth spans a wide geographic range encompassing the entire Palearctic region. Due to this wide geographic region and the presence of various populations globally, local adaptations have resulted in a species with high variability in life history and behavior across different populations.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Cabbage moth (revision 1314214191), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q1045638 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).