Florida fern caterpillar found in Michigan

From MSU Extension:

In the last few weeks, Michigan State University Extension has received reports across Michigan that growers have found Florida fern caterpillar, Callopistria floridensis (Guen’ee), larvae on Boston ferns growing in their greenhouses. This insect is not known to overwinter in Michigan and probably was attached to plants brought in from the southern region of the United States. Scouting plants that arrive in your greenhouse is critical to finding it before it causes damage to the foliage of fern plants.

In Florida, the caterpillar goes through the four life stages of a typical moth: egg, larva, pupa and adult moth.

This insect develops more rapidly at temperatures above 50 degrees Fahrenheit, completing a full lifecycle in 30 to 60 days at 70 to 85 F, respectively. Eggs are laid singly by the female at the rate of 200 to 600 per female and are found on the underside of young leaves and on the fiddleheads of the plant. After hatching, the caterpillar stage has five to six instars and they consume more foliage as they get larger

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