Members of the family Saturniidae include the wild silk moths. The species living in Maine include the io moth, the New England buckmoth, the eastern buckmoth, the polyphemus moth and the luna moth, which is pale green with a transparent spot and long curving tail. Two species of the genus Anisota occur in Maine: the orange-tipped (A. senatoria) and the pink-striped (A. virginiensis) oakworm moths. The promethea silkmoth, the cecropia silkmoth, the Columbia silkmoth, the pine-devil moth, the rosy maple moth and the imperial moth are also found in the state.
The numerous group of sphinx moths and hawkmoths are part of the family Sphingidae, which include medium to large moths. Among the 37 species found in Maine are three members of the genus Ceratomia: the elm sphinx, the catalpa sphinx and the waved sphinx. However, the most numerous genus is Sphinx, with seven species in Maine. The laurel sphinx (S. kalmiae) and the wild cherry sphinx (S. drupiferarum) often have more than 4 inches in wingspan, while the great ash sphinx (S. chersis) measures more than 5 inches in wingspan. Three species of the genus Hemaris, known as clearwings, are also found in the state.
Members of the family notodontidae are also called prominents, due to the wing tufts found in many species. Prominents living in Maine include six species of the genus schizura, such as the unicorn caterpillar moth; six species of the genus Heterocampa; three species of the genus Clostera, including the sigmoid prominent, as well as representatives of the genera Furcula, Gluphisia, Oligocentria and Peridea, among others.
Tiger moths and lichen moths are part of the family arctiidae, with more than 11,000 species spread worldwide. The 33 species found in Maine include the colorful nais tiger and painted lichen moths, the black and white harnessed and anna tiger moths, as well as the little white and the pearly-winged lichen moths. Some species in this group are nocturnal, while others are day-fliers.
The European yellow underwing (Noctua pronuba) is the only species of the family Noctuidae found in Maine. Native to Europe and Asia, this species was introduced in North America in the late 1970s. The family Oecophoridae also has a single species in Maine: the gold-striped leaftier moth (Machimia tentoriferella), which shows a yellowish to grayish brown color, with black spots. Other moth species living in Maine include a member of the family Gracillariidae, the leaf blotch miner moth (Acrocercops astericola), a member of the family Gelechiidae (Aristotelia isopelta), a species of the family Plutellidae, the diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) and a single species part of the Bucculatricidae family (Bucculatrix angustata).