Elachista bisulcella
Encyclopedia
Elachista bisulcella is a moth
of the Elachistidae
family. It is found from Fennoscandia
to the Pyrenees
, Italy
and Romania
and from Ireland
to Poland
.
The wingspan
is 8-10 mm. Adults are on wing at the end of June and again in August in two generations per year.
The larvae feed on Brachypodium sylvaticum, Calamagrostis epigejos, Carex elata, Deschampsia cespitosa and Festuca arundinacea
. They mine
the leaves of their host plant. The mine has the form of a descending and widening corridor. In the end, it has the form of an elongate blotch that may occupy the entire width of the leaf. The frass
is deposited in elongate lumps in the centre of the mine. Larvae can be found from autumn to June. The species overwinters within the mine. They are dull grey green with a pale brown head.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Elachistidae
Elachistidae
| image = Elachista rufocinerea 2.jpg| image_width = 240px| image_caption = Adult Elachista rufocinerea,demonstrating its tiny size versus an aphid and a spider mite | regnum = Animalia| phylum = Arthropoda| classis = Insecta...
family. It is found from Fennoscandia
Fennoscandia
Fennoscandia and Fenno-Scandinavia are geographic and geological terms used to describe the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula, Karelia and Finland...
to the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and from Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
to Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 8-10 mm. Adults are on wing at the end of June and again in August in two generations per year.
The larvae feed on Brachypodium sylvaticum, Calamagrostis epigejos, Carex elata, Deschampsia cespitosa and Festuca arundinacea
Festuca arundinacea
Festuca arundinacea is a species of fescue commonly known as Tall fescue. It is a cool-season perennial C3 species of bunchgrass native to Europe. It is an important forage grass throughout Europe, and many cultivars have been used in agriculture...
. They mine
Leaf miner
Leaf miner is a term used to describe the larvae of many different species of insect which live in and eat the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths , sawflies and flies , though some beetles and wasps also exhibit this behavior.Like Woodboring beetles, leaf...
the leaves of their host plant. The mine has the form of a descending and widening corridor. In the end, it has the form of an elongate blotch that may occupy the entire width of the leaf. The frass
Frass
Frass is the fine powdery material phytophagous insects pass as waste after digesting plant parts. It causes plants to excrete chitinase due to high chitin levels, it is a natural bloom stimulant, and has high nutrient levels. Frass is known to have abundant amoeba, beneficial bacteria, and fungi...
is deposited in elongate lumps in the centre of the mine. Larvae can be found from autumn to June. The species overwinters within the mine. They are dull grey green with a pale brown head.