Hypsopygia costalis
Encyclopedia
The gold triangle or clover hay moth (Hypsopygia costalis) is a species of moth
of the family Pyralidae
. It is found in Europe
. The wingspan
is 16–23 mm. The adult moths fly from May to July, depending on the location. The supposed species H. aurotaenialis is included here pending further study.
The caterpillar
s feed on dry vegetable matter. They have been found in haystack
s or thatching, as well as in chicken
(Gallus) and magpie
(Pica) nests. The caterpillar is injurious to clover hay, and to other hay when mixed with clover. Its depredations can be prevented by keeping the hay dry and well ventilated, as the insect preferably breeds in moist or matted material such as is to be found in the lower parts of haystacks, where affected hay becomes filled with webbings of the caterpillars and their excrement, rendering it unfit for feeding. A treatment is to burn the webbed material and to thoroughly clean the affected location.
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 family Pyralidae
Pyralidae
The Pyralidae or snout moths are a family of Lepidoptera in the ditrysian superfamily Pyraloidea. In many classifications, the grass moths are included in the Pyralidae as a subfamily, making the combined group one of the largest families in the Lepidoptera...
. It is found in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. 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 16–23 mm. The adult moths fly from May to July, depending on the location. The supposed species H. aurotaenialis is included here pending further study.
The caterpillar
Caterpillar
Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...
s feed on dry vegetable matter. They have been found in haystack
Haystack
Haystack or Haystacks may refer to:Agriculture:* A stack of hayPeople:* Haystak, an American rapper* William Calhoun, a professional wrestler who used the name of "Haystack" or "Haystacks" CalhounPlaces:...
s or thatching, as well as in chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
(Gallus) and magpie
Magpie
Magpies are passerine birds of the crow family, Corvidae.In Europe, "magpie" is often used by English speakers as a synonym for the European Magpie, as there are no other magpies in Europe outside Iberia...
(Pica) nests. The caterpillar is injurious to clover hay, and to other hay when mixed with clover. Its depredations can be prevented by keeping the hay dry and well ventilated, as the insect preferably breeds in moist or matted material such as is to be found in the lower parts of haystacks, where affected hay becomes filled with webbings of the caterpillars and their excrement, rendering it unfit for feeding. A treatment is to burn the webbed material and to thoroughly clean the affected location.
Synonyms
Junior synonyms of this species are:- Hypsopygia aurotaenialis (Christoph, 1881) (but see above)
- Hypsopygia rubrocilialis (Staudinger, 1870)
- Phalaena costalis Fabricius, 1775
- Pyralis fimbrialis Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775
- Pyralis hyllalis Walker, 1859
- Tortrix purpurana Thunberg, 1784
- Pyralis costalis