Leek moth - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Leek Moth or Onion Leaf Miner (Acrolepiopsis assectella) is a species of moths of family Acrolepiidae

Acrolepiidae

The Acrolepiidae family of moths are also known as False Diamondback moths.Caterpillars are typically 10 to 12 mm in length and spotted. Adults have a wingspan between 16 and 18 mm and are generally nocturnal.-Species:Some representative species are:...

, genus Acrolepiopsis
Acrolepiopsis
Acrolepiopsis is a genus of moths in the Acrolepiidae family.-Species:The following species are classified:* Acrolepiopsis assectella Zeller, 1839* Acrolepiopsis betulella Curtis, 1838* Acrolepiopsis marcidella Curtis, 1850...

, a pest of leek

Leek

The leek, Allium ampeloprasum var. porrum , also sometimes known as Allium porrum, is a vegetable which belongs, along with the onion and garlic, to family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Allioideae...

crops. The species 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...

and Siberia

Siberia

Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...

. It was also recorded from Hawaii

Hawaii

Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

, but this was a misidentification of Acrolepiopsis sapporensis
Acrolepiopsis sapporensis
The Asiatic Onion Leafminer is a moth of the Acrolepiidae family. It is native to Asia, where it is found from Mongolia to Japan...

.

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 about 12 mm.

The larvae feed on Allium cepa, Allium cepa var. aggregatum

Shallot

The shallot is the botanical variety of Allium cepa to which the multiplier onion also belongs. It was formerly classified as the species A. ascalonicum, a name now considered a synonym of the correct name...

, Allium fistulosum, Allium montanum
Allium montanum
Allium montanum is a species of Allium. It bears pink flowers. It is a typical limestone plant....

and Allium porrum.