''Trichophaga tapetzella'', the tapestry moth or carpet moth, is a

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

Tineidae Tineidae is a family of moths in the order Lepidoptera described by Pierre André Latreille in 1810. Collectively, they are known as fungus moths or tineid moths. The family contains considerably more than 3,000 species in more than 300 genera. ...

, commonly referred to as fungus moths. It is found worldwide. 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 14–18 mm. The head is white, the forewings ochreous-white, thinly strigulated with grey; basal 2/5 dark purplish-fuscous; a roundish grey posterior discal spot; some small black spots about apex. Hindwings light brassy-grey.Zagulajev, A.K., 1990 Tineidae; in G.S. Medvedev (ed.): ''Keys to the insects of the europaean part of the USSR'', Vol.IV: Lepidoptera, part 2 (english translation), Oxonian Press Pvt.Ltd., New Dehli, 1987 The moth flies from June to September depending on the location. The larvae feed on animal skin, bird nests, pellets, fur, clothing and floor and furniture covering made of animal skin. They can cause significant damage to

carpet A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of Pile (textile), pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fiber, synthetic fibres such as polyprop ...

s, clothes, and other household fabrics. Tapestry moths complete their cycles within a year and are more like webbing clothes moths in that they spin webbing in areas where they like to reside. Their speed of development depends entirely upon local temperature, humidity and food supplies.

References

External links

Tapestry moth at UKmothsLepiforum.de
Tineinae Moths described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Tineidae-stub