''Chilo phragmitella'' is a species of

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

Crambidae The Crambidae are the grass moth family of lepidopterans. They are variable in appearance, the nominal subfamily Crambinae (grass moths) taking up closely folded postures on grass stems where they are inconspicuous, while other subfamilies includ ...

, sometimes referred to by the vernacular names wainscot veneer or reed veneer. It was first described by

Jacob Hübner Jacob Hübner (20 June 1761 – 13 September 1826, in Augsburg) was a German entomologist. He was the author of ''Sammlung Europäischer Schmetterlinge'' (1796–1805), a founding work of entomology. Scientific career Hübner was the author of '' ...

between 1805 and 1810 as ''Tinea phragmitella'', and is the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen( ...

of the genus '' Chilo''. ''Chilo phragmitella'' occurs in wetland habitats with reed beds and paddy fields, and can be found in much of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

, including Great-Britain, and parts of

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an ...

Original description

Date of original description

The species was, as ''Tinea phragmitella'', first described by

in his work ''Sammlung europäischer Schmetterlinge'', a multi-volume work with publication dates from 1793 to 1841.

Francis Hemming Arthur Francis Hemming, CMG, CBE (9 February 1893 – 22 February 1964) was an English entomologist who specialised in Lepidoptera. He was mostly known, both professionally and socially, by his middle-name as Francis Hemming. Hemming was a Bri ...

, in his 1937 systematic treatment of the entomological works of Jacob Hübner, narrowed the range of years in which the description of ''Tinea phragmitella'' may have been published to 1805–1810.

Etymology

The specific name ''phragmitella'' refers to the species' larval food source.

Distribution and habitat

''Chilo phragmitella'' occurs in most of Europe, including the British Isles. It is also known from parts of Asia, including Iran, Iraq, Japan and China. It is found in wetlands with large reed beds and

paddy fields A paddy field is a flooded field of arable land used for growing semiaquatic crops, most notably rice and taro. It originates from the Neolithic rice-farming cultures of the Yangtze River basin in southern China, associated with pre- ...

Behaviour and appearance

Immature stages

Larvae are whitish and feed internally from stem and

rootstock A rootstock is part of a plant, often an underground part, from which new above-ground growth can be produced. It could also be described as a stem with a well developed root system, to which a bud from another plant is grafted. It can refer to a ...

of common reed (''

Phragmites australis ''Phragmites australis'', known as the common reed, is a species of plant. It is a broadly distributed wetland grass that can grow up to tall. Description ''Phragmites australis'' commonly forms extensive stands (known as reed beds), which may ...

'') and reed sweet-grass (''

Glyceria maxima ''Glyceria maxima'' (syn. ''G. aquatica'' (L.) Wahlenb.; ''G. spectabilis'' Mert. & W.D.J. Koch; ''Molinia maxima'' Hartm.; ''Poa aquatica'' L.), commonly known as great manna grass, reed mannagrass, reed sweet-grass, and greater sweet-grass is a ...

''). Larvae take two years to mature. Prior to

pupation A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in the ...

, the larva creates a hole in the stem to exit from as moth. Pupation occurs within the stem beneath the exit created by the larva.

Adult

Adults are sexually dimorphic, with smaller, darker males. Wingspan is respectively 24–32 mm for males and 30–40 mm for females. Both sexes have long labial palpi. Female specimens of ''Chilo phragmitella'' may resemble those of '' Donacaula forficella''. Depending on location, adults may be on wing from May to September. In Great-Britain, adults are on wing from June to July in a single generation.

Handbook of British Lepidoptera

The following description of ''Chilo phragmitella'' was published in

Edward Meyrick Edward Meyrick (25 November 1854, in Ramsbury – 31 March 1938, at Thornhanger, Marlborough) was an English schoolmaster and amateur entomologist. He was an expert on microlepidoptera and some consider him one of the founders of modern m ...

's 1895 ''A Handbook of British Lepidoptera'':

Notes and references

Notes

References

External links

waarneming.nl

{{Taxonbar, from=Q835465 Chiloini Moths described in 1805 Moths of Japan Moths of Europe Moths of Asia Taxa named by Jacob Hübner