Ocrasa glaucinalis
Encyclopedia
Ocrasa glaucinalis is a moth
of the family Pyralidae
. It is sometimes placed in the genus
Orthopygia either alone
or with a few other species. Being the type species
of Orthopygia, as soon as O. glaucinalis is placed in Ocrasa
(as is done here) "Orthopygia" is abolished.
It is native to the European continent
. The wingspan
is 23–31 mm. The adults fly from June to October in the temperate
parts of its range (such as Belgium
and The Netherlands).
The caterpillar
s feed on decaying plants and dry leaves. They have been found in some fairly unusual locations, such as Buteo
nests, straw
and thatching
, and discarded paper
.
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 family Pyralidae
Pyralidae
The Pyralidae or snout moths are a family of Lepidoptera in the ditrysian superfamily Pyraloidea. In many classifications, the grass moths are included in the Pyralidae as a subfamily, making the combined group one of the largest families in the Lepidoptera...
. It is sometimes placed in the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Orthopygia either alone
Monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term's usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a separate use in conservation biology, monotypic habitat, regarding species habitat conversion eliminating biodiversity and...
or with a few other species. Being the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
of Orthopygia, as soon as O. glaucinalis is placed in Ocrasa
Ocrasa
Ocrasa is a genus of moths belonging to the family Pyralidae. Many species nowadays placed here were formerly included in Herculia.In addition, the proposed genus Orthopygia, which some authors consider a separate lineage is here merged with Ocrasa.-Selected species:* Ocrasa acerasta* Ocrasa...
(as is done here) "Orthopygia" is abolished.
It is native to the European continent
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...
. 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 23–31 mm. The adults fly from June to October in the temperate
Temperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
parts of its range (such as Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and The Netherlands).
The caterpillar
Caterpillar
Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...
s feed on decaying plants and dry leaves. They have been found in some fairly unusual locations, such as Buteo
Buteo
Buteo is a genus of medium to fairly large, wide-ranging raptors with a robust body and broad wings. In the Old World, members of this genus are called "buzzards", but "hawk" is used in North America...
nests, straw
Straw
Straw is an agricultural by-product, the dry stalks of cereal plants, after the grain and chaff have been removed. Straw makes up about half of the yield of cereal crops such as barley, oats, rice, rye and wheat. It has many uses, including fuel, livestock bedding and fodder, thatching and...
and thatching
Thatching
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge , rushes, or heather, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. It is a very old roofing method and has been used in both tropical and temperate climates...
, and discarded paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
.