''Ephestia elutella'', the cacao moth, tobacco moth or warehouse moth, is a small

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

of the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Pyralidae The Pyralidae, commonly called pyralid moths, snout moths or grass moths, are a family of Lepidoptera in the ditrysian superfamily Pyraloidea. In many (particularly older) classifications, the grass moths (Crambidae) are included in the Pyr ...

. It is probably native to Europe, but has been transported widely, even to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. A

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

is ''E. e. pterogrisella''. The

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

is 14–20 mm. Forewings in male are less elongate,

than other ''Ephestia '' ''Than'' is a grammatical particle analyzed as both a conjunction and a preposition in the English language. It introduces a comparison and is associated with comparatives and with words such as more, less, and fewer. Typically, it measures t ...

with costal fold enclosing flocculent scales; grey, sprinkled with whitish and mixed with dark fuscous, towards dorsum often also with ferruginous-reddish; lines pale, dark-edged, first straight, rather oblique, second almost straight; two darker transversely placed discal dots. Hindwings pale fuscous, anteriorly thinly scaled, in 6 with median and subdorsal whitish-ochreous basal hair tufts. Larva brown-whitish; dots brown; head and plate of 2 reddish brown: on biscuit, chocolate, figs This moth flies throughout the warmer months, e.g. from the end of April to October in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Infestation

The caterpillars of ''Ephestia elutella'' are often considered a pest, as they feed on dry plant produce, such as

cocoa bean The cocoa bean, also known as cocoa () or cacao (), is the dried and fully fermented seed of ''Theobroma cacao'', the cacao tree, from which cocoa solids (a mixture of nonfat substances) and cocoa butter (the fat) can be extracted. Cacao tree ...

s and

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

, as well as

cereal A cereal is a grass cultivated for its edible grain. Cereals are the world's largest crops, and are therefore staple foods. They include rice, wheat, rye, oats, barley, millet, and maize ( Corn). Edible grains from other plant families, ...

s and

dried fruit Dried fruit is fruit from which the majority of the original water content has been removed prior to cooking or being eaten on its own. Drying may occur either naturally, by sun, through the use of industrial dehydrators, or by freeze drying. ...

and

nut Nut often refers to: * Nut (fruit), fruit composed of a hard shell and a seed * Nut (food), a dry and edible fruit or seed, including but not limited to true nuts * Nut (hardware), fastener used with a bolt Nut, NUT or Nuts may also refer to: A ...

s. Less usual foods include dried-out meat and animal carcasses, specimens in

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

collections, and dry

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

Tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

and its related products can be infested by ''

Lasioderma serricorne ''Lasioderma serricorne'', more commonly referred to as the cigarette beetle, cigar beetle, or tobacco beetle, is a small beetle that shares a resemblance with the drugstore beetle (''Stegobium paniceum)'' and the common furniture beetle (''Anobi ...

'' (tobacco beetle) and ''Ephestia elutella'', which are the most widespread and damaging parasites to the

tobacco industry The tobacco industry comprises those persons and companies who are engaged in the growth, preparation for sale, shipment, advertisement, and distribution of tobacco and tobacco-related products. It is a global industry; tobacco can grow in any ...

. Infestation can range from the tobacco cultivated in the fields to the

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

used for manufacturing

cigar A cigar is a rolled bundle of dried and Fermentation, fermented tobacco leaves made to be Tobacco smoking, smoked. Cigars are produced in a variety of sizes and shapes. Since the 20th century, almost all cigars are made of three distinct comp ...

cigarillo A cigarillo (; in turn (diminutive suffix); in parts of Latin America, in Spain) is a short, narrow cigar. Unlike cigarettes, cigarillos are wrapped in tobacco leaves or brown, tobacco-based paper. Cigarillos are smaller than regular cigars b ...

cigarette A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into Rolling paper, thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhale ...

s, etc.

Taxonomy

This

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

has been known under a number of

junior synonym In taxonomy, the scientific classification of living organisms, a synonym is an alternative scientific name for the accepted scientific name of a taxon. The botanical and zoological codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. ...

s:See references in Savela (2009) * ''Ephestia amarella'' Dyar, 1904 * ''Ephestia icosiella'' Ragonot, 1888 * ''Ephestia infumatella'' Ragonot, 1887 * ''Ephestia roxburghi'' (''

lapsus In philology, a lapsus (Latin for "lapse, slip, error") is an involuntary mistake made while writing or speaking. Investigations In 1895 an investigation into verbal slips was undertaken by a philologist and a psychologist, Rudolf Meringer and ...

'') * ''Ephestia roxburghii'' Gregson, 1873 * ''Ephestia roxburgii'' (''lapsus'') * ''Ephestia uniformata'' Dufrane, 1942 (

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

) * ''Homoeosoma affusella'' Ragonot, 1888 * ''Hyphantidium sericarium'' Scott, 1859 * ''Phycis angusta'' (Haworth, 1811) * ''Phycis elutea'' Haworth, 1811; (unjustified emendation) * ''Phycis rufa'' Haworth, 1811 * ''Phycis semirufa'' Haworth, 1811 * ''Tinea elutella'' Hübner, 1796

Footnotes

References

* *

External links

Lepidoptera of BelgiumCacao moth on UKMoths
Phycitini Household pest insects Moths described in 1796 Invertebrates of the Arabian Peninsula Moths of Japan Moths of Europe Moths of New Zealand Insects of Turkey Insects of Iceland {{Phycitini-stub