the larva of any of a large group of moths in the order Lepidoptera. Because the larva lacks the middle pair of legs, it moves in a characteristic “inching,” or “looping,” gait by extending the front part of the body and bringing the rear up to meet it. The larvae resemble twigs or leaf stems, feed on foliage, and often seriously damage or destroy trees and crops. The spring cankerworm (species Paleacrita vernata) and the fall cankerworm (Alsophila pometaria) attack fruit and shade trees, skeletonizing the leaves and spinning threads between the branches. Pupation usually occurs in the soil without a cocoon. Because of their distinctive larvae, the name measuring worm moth is sometimes applied to certain members of the Geometridae (see geometrid moth).