Mompha miscella
Encyclopedia
Mompha miscella is a moth
in the Momphidae
family. It is found from most of Europe
to Asia Minor
and North Africa
. In the north, it ranges to southern Fennoscandia
.
The wingspan
is 7-9 mm. There are two generations per year with adults on wing from the end of April to the beginning of October.
The larvae feed on Cistus
, Helianthemum apenninum
, Helianthemum canum
and Helianthemum nummularium
. They mine
the leaves of their host plant. The mine has the form of a corridor which is densely packed with frass
. It suddenly widens into a blotch that may occupy the whole width of the leaf and overruns the initial corridor. In the blotch, the frass is either disersed or clumped. The larvae may leave the mine and restart elsewhere. Larvae can be found from October to May and from June to July. Pupation takes place outside of the mine within a cocoon in soil litter.
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...
in the Momphidae
Momphidae
Momphidae is a family of moths. These tend to be rather small moths with a wingspan of up to 21 mm. The wings are held folded over the body at rest...
family. It is found from most of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
and North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
. In the north, it ranges to southern Fennoscandia
Fennoscandia
Fennoscandia and Fenno-Scandinavia are geographic and geological terms used to describe the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula, Karelia and Finland...
.
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 7-9 mm. There are two generations per year with adults on wing from the end of April to the beginning of October.
The larvae feed on Cistus
Cistus
Cistus is a genus of flowering plants in the rockrose family Cistaceae, containing about 20 species . They are perennial shrubs found on dry or rocky soils throughout the Mediterranean region, from Morocco and Portugal through to the Middle East, and also on the Canary Islands...
, Helianthemum apenninum
Helianthemum apenninum
Helianthemum apenninum, the white rock-rose, is a white-flowering rock rose found in dry grassy and rocky places across large parts of Europe....
, Helianthemum canum
Helianthemum canum
Helianthemum canum, commonly called Hoary rockrose, is a low growing plant confined to rocky dry calcareous areas especially close to the sea.The plant typically has a central stock from which numerous branches radiate horizontally or ascending...
and Helianthemum nummularium
Helianthemum nummularium
Helianthemum nummularium is a species of rockrose , native to most of Europe.-Description:It is an evergreen trailing plant with loose terminal clusters of bright yellow, saucer-shaped flowers...
. 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. The mine has the form of a corridor which is densely packed with frass
Frass
Frass is the fine powdery material phytophagous insects pass as waste after digesting plant parts. It causes plants to excrete chitinase due to high chitin levels, it is a natural bloom stimulant, and has high nutrient levels. Frass is known to have abundant amoeba, beneficial bacteria, and fungi...
. It suddenly widens into a blotch that may occupy the whole width of the leaf and overruns the initial corridor. In the blotch, the frass is either disersed or clumped. The larvae may leave the mine and restart elsewhere. Larvae can be found from October to May and from June to July. Pupation takes place outside of the mine within a cocoon in soil litter.