''Bucculatrix parthenica'' is a

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of ...

of the family

Bucculatricidae Bucculatricidae or (Bucculatrigidae) is a family of moths. This small family has representatives in all parts of the world. Some authors place the group as a subfamily of the family Lyonetiidae. Adults of this family are easily overlooked, bein ...

. It is native to

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

, but was released in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia, as a biological control agent for '' Parthenium'' weeds. It was described by John David Bradley in 1990. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan ...

is about 5 mm. Adults are white and brown. The larvae feed on ''

Parthenium hysterophorus ''Parthenium hysterophorus'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to the American tropics. Common names include Santa-Maria, Santa Maria feverfew, whitetop weed, and famine weed.McConnachie AJ, Strathie LW, ...

''. First and second

instar An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'', "form", "likeness") is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each moult (''ecdysis''), until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to grow o ...

larvae mine the leaf of their host plant, feeding on it from the inside and leaving the upper and lower skin intact. Later instars feed externally on the leaves. Pupation takes place in a white cocoon under a leaf or stem.

External links

Australian Faunal DirectoryBiology of Bucculatrix parthenica Bradley sp. n. (Lepidoptera: Bucculatricidae) and its establishment in Australia as a biological control agent for Parthenium hysterophorus (Asteraceae)
Moths of Queensland Bucculatricidae Moths described in 1990 Moths of Central America {{Gracillarioidea-stub