Elachista habrella
Encyclopedia
Elachista habrella is a moth
of the Elachistidae
family. It is found along the eastern coast of New South Wales
and Queensland
.
The wingspan
is 6.2-6.4 mm for males and 5.7-6.4 mm for females. The forewings of the males are metallic blue basally with shiny dark bronzy brown scales distally. Females have similar forewings but have three bluish white markings. The hindwings of both sexes are dark grey.
The larvae feed on Oplismensus aemulus. They mine
the leaves of their host plant.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Elachistidae
Elachistidae
| image = Elachista rufocinerea 2.jpg| image_width = 240px| image_caption = Adult Elachista rufocinerea,demonstrating its tiny size versus an aphid and a spider mite | regnum = Animalia| phylum = Arthropoda| classis = Insecta...
family. It is found along the eastern coast of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
and Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 6.2-6.4 mm for males and 5.7-6.4 mm for females. The forewings of the males are metallic blue basally with shiny dark bronzy brown scales distally. Females have similar forewings but have three bluish white markings. The hindwings of both sexes are dark grey.
The larvae feed on Oplismensus aemulus. They mine
Leaf miner
Leaf miner is a term used to describe the larvae of many different species of insect which live in and eat the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths , sawflies and flies , though some beetles and wasps also exhibit this behavior.Like Woodboring beetles, leaf...
the leaves of their host plant.