Hellinsia inquinatus
Encyclopedia
Hellinsia inquinatus is a moth
of the Pterophoridae family. It is found in North America
, including Florida
, Mississippi
Oklahoma
, Tennessee
, Maryland
, Alabama
, Texas
, Missouri
, Colorado
and Arizona
. It has also been recorded from Hispaniola
.
The wingspan
is about 16-18 mm. The head and thorax are grey, spotted with white. The abdomen is grey. The forewings are dust grey, thickly dusted with white and brown scales forming scattered flecks or blotches, one of which is generally present on the middle of the space between the base of the wing and the fissure. Aa larger one is found before the fissure and separated from it by a whitish space, below this is a longitudinal streak of scales, bordered basally by a white spot and separated from the spot before the fissure by a whitish space. Two blackish streaks or spots occur on the costa, the larger one above the base of fissure, the other half-way between it and the apex of the wing. The fringes are greyish, cut with white under the apices of the lobes and on the anal angles, where there is a white wisp. A similar wisp is found before the apex and on the anal angle of the second lobe. A brown dot sometimes rests on the base of each of the three wisps. The hindwings are brownish grey with a diffuse brown dot on the apex of each feather or at least on the first.
The larvae feed on Ambrosia artemissiifolia. They feed externally on the young foliage of their host plant. They are pale greenish grey, with very characteristic dark markings and lateral tufts of long, white silken hairs. Pupation takes place in a pale fulvous pupa with a roseate hue.
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 Pterophoridae family. It is found in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, including Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
and Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. It has also been recorded from Hispaniola
Hispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
.
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 about 16-18 mm. The head and thorax are grey, spotted with white. The abdomen is grey. The forewings are dust grey, thickly dusted with white and brown scales forming scattered flecks or blotches, one of which is generally present on the middle of the space between the base of the wing and the fissure. Aa larger one is found before the fissure and separated from it by a whitish space, below this is a longitudinal streak of scales, bordered basally by a white spot and separated from the spot before the fissure by a whitish space. Two blackish streaks or spots occur on the costa, the larger one above the base of fissure, the other half-way between it and the apex of the wing. The fringes are greyish, cut with white under the apices of the lobes and on the anal angles, where there is a white wisp. A similar wisp is found before the apex and on the anal angle of the second lobe. A brown dot sometimes rests on the base of each of the three wisps. The hindwings are brownish grey with a diffuse brown dot on the apex of each feather or at least on the first.
The larvae feed on Ambrosia artemissiifolia. They feed externally on the young foliage of their host plant. They are pale greenish grey, with very characteristic dark markings and lateral tufts of long, white silken hairs. Pupation takes place in a pale fulvous pupa with a roseate hue.