Chilo phragmitella | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Crambidae |
Genus: | Chilo |
Species: | C. phragmitella
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Binomial name | |
Chilo phragmitella (Hübner, 1805)
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Synonyms | |
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Chilo phragmitella is a species of moth of the family Crambidae, sometimes referred to by the vernacular names wainscot veneer[1] or reed veneer.[2] It was first described by Jacob Hübner between 1805 and 1810 as Tinea phragmitella, and is the type species of the genus Chilo.[3]
Chilo phragmitella occurs in wetland habitats with reed beds and paddy fields, and can be found in much of Europe, including Great-Britain, and parts of Asia.
The species was, as Tinea phragmitella,[4] first described by Jacob Hübner in his work Sammlung europäischer Schmetterlinge,[3] a multi-volume work with publication dates from 1793 to 1841.[5] Francis Hemming, in his 1937 systematic treatment[a] of the entomological works of Jacob Hübner, narrowed the range of years in which the description of Tinea phragmitella may have been published to 1805–1810.[5]
The specific name phragmitella refers to the species' larval food source.[6]
Chilo phragmitella occurs in most of Europe,[4] including the British Isles.[7] It is also known from parts of Asia, including Iran,[8][9] Iraq,[9] Japan[9] and China.[9] It is found in wetlands with large reed beds[10] and paddy fields.[8]
Larvae are whitish and feed internally from stem and rootstock of common reed (Phragmites australis) and reed sweet-grass (Glyceria maxima).[7][11] Larvae take two years to mature.[12][13] Prior to pupation, the larva creates a hole in the stem to exit from as moth. Pupation occurs within the stem beneath the exit created by the larva.[7][14]
Adults are sexually dimorphic, with smaller, darker males. Wingspan is respectively 24–32 mm for males and 30–40 mm for females.[7] Both sexes have long labial palpi.[11] Female specimens of Chilo phragmitella may resemble those of Donacaula forficella.[6]
Depending on location, adults may be on wing from May to September.[citation needed] In Great-Britain, adults are on wing from June to July in a single generation.[7]
The following description of Chilo phragmitella was published in Edward Meyrick's 1895 A Handbook of British Lepidoptera:[15]
The face with a conical horny projection. The labial palpi longer than head and thorax. Forewings in female much narrower and more acute than in male ; pale ochreous, more or less suffused with brown, especially in male, tending to form dark streaks on and between veins ; a dark fuscous discal dot ; termen sinuate. Hindwings are pale whitish-ochreous or whitish, The larva is ochreous -whitish ; dorsal, subdorsal, and lateral lines reddish -brown ; head and plate of 2 yellowish -brown.