Stigmella carpinella
Encyclopedia
Stigmella carpinella is a moth
of the Nepticulidae
family. It is found in from Sweden
to Belgium
, the Alps
, Croatia
and Bulgaria
, and from Great Britain
to Ukraine
.
The wingspan
is 5–6 mm. Adults are on wing at the end of April.
The larvae feed on Carpinus betulus, Carpinus orientalis
and Ostrya carpinifolia
. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine consists of a rather broad corridor. The first part is mostly filled with frass. Later it is found in thick lumps. The trajectory of the mine is not angular, neither is it determined by the leaf venation.
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 Nepticulidae
Nepticulidae
Nepticulidae is a family of very small moths with a worldwide distribution. They are characterised by eyecaps over the eyes . These pigmy moths or midget moths, as they are commonly known, include the smallest of all living moths, with a wingspan that can be as little as 3 mm...
family. It is found in from Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
to 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...
, the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
and Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, and from Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
to Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
.
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 5–6 mm. Adults are on wing at the end of April.
The larvae feed on Carpinus betulus, Carpinus orientalis
Carpinus orientalis
Carpinus orientalis is a hornbeam native from southeastern Europe to northern Iran and occurs usually on hot dry sites at lower altitudes than European Hornbeam....
and Ostrya carpinifolia
Ostrya carpinifolia
Ostrya carpinifolia, the Hop Hornbeam, is a tree in genus Ostrya, in the family Betulaceae, native to Europe.-Distribution:Ostrya carpinifolia is found in Italy, France, Austria, Slovenia, Greece, the Balkans, southern Switzerland and Anatolia.It is found in the medium elevations, in southern...
. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine consists of a rather broad corridor. The first part is mostly filled with frass. Later it is found in thick lumps. The trajectory of the mine is not angular, neither is it determined by the leaf venation.