The rice moth (''Corcyra cephalonica'') 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 Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

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 Pyra ...

. This small moth can become a significant

pest Pest or The Pest may refer to: Science and medicine * Pest (organism), an animal or plant deemed to be detrimental to humans or human concerns ** Weed, a plant considered undesirable * Infectious disease, an illness resulting from an infection ** ...

. Its

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larva, larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterfly, butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawfly ...

s feed on dry plantstuffs such as

seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosper ...

s, including

cereals A cereal is any grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grain crops are grown in greater quantities and provide more foo ...

(e.g.

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly '' Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and ''Porteresia'', both wild and domestica ...

). Other recordedGrabe (1942) foods are

flour Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many c ...

and

dried fruits Dried fruit is fruit from which the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to ...

Synonyms

Other scientific names, now invalid, for the rice moth are:See references in Savela (2009) * ''Anerastia lineata'' Legrand, 1965 * ''Corcyra translineella'' Hampson, 1901 * ''Melissoblaptes cephalonica'' Stainton, 1866 * ''Melissoblaptes oeconomellus'' Mann, 1872 * ''Tineopsis theobromae'' Dyar, 1913 When describing his ''T. theobromae'' in 1913, Dyar established the genus ''Tineopsis''. He overlooked, however, that this had already been proposed by

Cajetan Freiherr von Felder Baron Cajetan von Felder (german: link=no, Cajetan Freiherr von Felder; 19 September 1814 – 30 November 1894) was an Austrian lawyer, entomologist and liberal politician. He served as mayor of Vienna from 1868 to 1878. Life and career Fe ...

for a (presumed)

arctiid moth The Arctiinae (formerly called the family Arctiidae) are a large and diverse subfamily of moths with around 11,000 species found all over the world, including 6,000 neotropical species.Scoble, MJ. (1995). ''The Lepidoptera: Form, Function and D ...

in 1861. Nonwithstanding that Felder's species is somewhat dubious and has not been identified in recent lists, Dyar's ''Tineopsis'' is a

junior homonym In biology, a homonym is a name for a taxon that is identical in spelling to another such name, that belongs to a different taxon. The rule in the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature is that the first such name to be published is the se ...

and thus invalid in any case. The species of the genus ''Corcyra'' have recently been considered members of the genus ''

Aphomia ''Aphomia'' is a genus of small moths belonging to the family Pyralidae. Some breed in the nests of Anthophila (bees and bumblebees), where their caterpillars are parasitic feeders of wax, honey and pollen. Species * '' Aphomia argentia'' Whall ...

'' by some researchers.

Footnotes

References

* (1942): Eigenartige Geschmacksrichtungen bei Kleinschmetterlingsraupen Strange tastes among micromoth caterpillars" ''Zeitschrift des Wiener Entomologen-Vereins'' 27: 105–109

n German N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

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* (2009): Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and some other life forms �

Version of 2009-APR-07. Retrieved 2010-APR-10. Moths described in 1866 Tirathabini Agricultural pest insects Moths of Madagascar Moths of Japan Moths of Europe Moths of Réunion Moths of Asia Moths of Africa {{Galleriinae-stub

Synonyms

See also

Footnotes

References