Epicephala relictella is a moth

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 Gracillariidae

Gracillariidae

Gracillariidae is an important family of insects in the order Lepidoptera and the principal family of leaf miners that includes several economic, horticultural or recently invasive pest species such as the horse-chestnut leaf miner, Cameraria ohridella....

 family. It is known from the Russian Far East

Russian Far East

Russian Far East is a term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i.e., extreme east parts of Russia, between Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia and the Pacific Ocean...

, China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

 (Tianjin, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Gansu) and Korea

Korea

Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

.

Adult

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 9–13 mm. The head is white and tufted. The tegula and forewing are greyish brown with white stripes and a large black spot near the apex. The dorsal margin is white tinged with ocherous yellow, longitudinally forming a broad band. The abdomen is greying brown on the dorsal surface except for the first two segments which are grey.

Egg

The egg is oval and has a diameter of about 0.15–0.20 mm. The surface is smooth and shiny. At first, it is yellowish white and nearly transparent, then becoming straw yellow before hatching.

Larva

Young instar larva are very similar to that of Conopomorpha flueggella

Conopomorpha flueggella

Conopomorpha flueggella is a moth of the Gracillariidae family. It is known from China .-Adult:The wingspan is 8-15.5 mm. The head is grey to greyish brown and the frons is greyish white. The thorax and tegula are dark brown. The forewing is narrow and the costal and dorsal margins are nearly...

. Mature larva are 5–6.5 mm. The head capsule is brownish yellow and the median 2/3 of each segment on the thorax and abdomen is dark red while the anterior and posterior ends are white. The thoracic segments are slightly blue and there are blue spots on the abdominal segments. There are sparse white setae on the body.

Pupa

The pupa is 4–5.5 mm and fusiform. It is greenish yellow in the early pupal stage, changing gradually to dark brown.

Cocoon

The cocoon is 6–8 mm, white, flat elliptic, with some white grains attached on the surface.

Life History

There is one generation per year in Tianjin, China. The larval stage is completed within one fruit. When completing larval development, the mature larvae quit the fruits and pupate on the leaves, and overwinter under leaf litter or stones. Adults appear from June to July. They can emerge during the whole day, but the peak occurs in the morning. The moths are most active at night, drinking nectar and ovipositing. During the daytime they rest on leaves or branches. Adult longevity is three to ten days, but adults generally live for five to seven days. Adults hardly come to light.