The spongy moth’s new name replaces an ethnic slur
Entomologists chose the common name as a nod to the invasive species’ eggs
![photo of three spongy moths resting tree bark](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/030722_jc_spongy-moths_feat.jpg?fit=1030%2C580&ssl=1)
The invasive spongy moth (pictured) used to be called the gypsy moth, a pejorative term that entomologists have replaced with a name that references the insect’s porous egg casings (seen here as brown masses beneath the moths).
John Ghent/Bugwood.org (CC BY 3.0)