Big brown moth in Allegheny county Pennsylvania.

Question

I was just outside on my deck and saw the biggest moth I've ever seen in my life. Usually, bugs don't bother me and i'm actual prone to playing with them but this thing just scared the c**p out of me.

It had to have a wingspan of at least 5 inches.

Tan-ish brown wings with not a lot of markings.

A white kind of oval shaped thorax and abdomen.

The bottom of the fore wing wasn't a straight line but curved up and then back into the thorax.

If someone could tell me a name of something that sounds like that or website that could point me in the right direction that'd be great.

Answer 1

Was it a Cecropia Moth?

http://www.google.com/search?client=safa...

Imperial Moth

http://schmidling.com/impmoth.htm

Answer 2

I bet it'd be a Gypsy Moth. Pennsylvania is having infestation problems again this year. They seem worse than previous years, our county has a spray program so we're not being hit so bad.These things are destructive. Here's a pic or two:

http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&re...

Answer 3

i believe what your seeing is a gypsy moth, i lived in western pa. and ive seen a few that were gypsy moths,,

Answer 4

Based on the size and general description

http://bugguide.net/index.php?q=search&k...

based on the size and the re-curved fore wing

http://bugguide.net/node/view/73647