(Emmelina monodactyla)
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Biology • Distribution • Taxonomy
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Description |
Morning-glory plume moth is a small, very common, and very widespread plume moth. It occurs in Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America. It occurs throughout most of the United States and southern Canada, but it is absent from the Great Basin. It is common in Minnesota. It is found wherever its host plants are found. The larvae feed mostly on bindweeds (Family Convolvulaceae), but also on a wide variety of other herbaceous plants. Adults have a 11⁄16″ to 1 1⁄16″ (18 to 27 mm) wingspan. They rest with their wings tightly rolled and held out at right angles to the body. This is the feature that is the source of one of its common names, “T-moth”. The size, background color, and markings are variable. The abdomen has a pale stripe above, and there is a small, narrow, dark streak on each abdominal segment. The second and third abdominal segments are long. The forewings are usually whitish or pale brown, but they can be darker. They are narrow at the base and are flared to at least twice as wide at the tip. They are deeply notched at the tip, dividing each wing into two lobes. The leading edge (costal margin) of each forewing is straight for three-quarters of its length, then convex to the tip. The inner margin is straight and slightly angles backward at the base. There is a black dot near the leading edge (costal margin) a little less than one-third the distance from the wing base; a small, dark, irregular spot near the base of the notch; two dark dots on the costal margin near the wingtip; and two or three dark spots on the lower edge (inner margin) near the tip. The markings vary in size and are sometimes indistinct. The lobes of the hindwing are fringed with long, hair-like filaments, giving the lobe a plume-like appearance, and resembling a bird’s feather. The legs are long, slender, and sometimes spiny. On the hind leg, the fourth segment (tibia) is two to three times longer than the third segment (femur). It has a single long spur at the tip and a pair of spurs near the middle (proximal spurs). The proximal spurs consist of a short lateral spur and a long medial spur. The medial spur is twice as long as the lateral spur. |
Size |
Wingspan: 11⁄16″ to 1 1⁄16″ (18 to 27 mm) |
Similar Species |
Habitat |
Any habitat where its host plants are found |
Biology |
Season |
Two generations per year |
Behavior |
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Life Cycle |
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Larva Food |
Mostly bindweeds (Family Convolvulaceae), but also a wide variety of other herbaceous plants. |
Adult Food |
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Distribution |
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Sources |
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10/22/2024 | ||
Occurrence |
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Very common and widespread |
Taxonomy |
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Order |
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Superfamily |
Pterophoroidea (plume moths and allies) |
Family |
Pterophoridae (plume moths) |
Subfamily |
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Tribe |
Oidaematophorini |
Genus |
Emmelina |
The genus Emmelina was formerly placed in the tribe Pterophorini. |
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Subordinate Taxa |
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Synonyms |
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Alucita monodactyla Alucita pterodactyla Emmelina barberi Emmelina bidactyla Emmelina cineridactylus Emmelina flaveodactylus Emmelina impersonalis Emmelina naevosidactylus Emmelina pergracilidactylus Emmelina pictipennis Emmelina pterodactyla Phalaena bidactyla Phalaena monodactyla Pterophorus barberi Pterophorus canescens Pterophorus cineridactylus Pterophorus didactyla Pterophorus flaveodactylus Pterophorus impersonalis Pterophorus monodactylus Pterophorus naevosidactylus Pterophorus pergracilidactylus Pterophorus pictipennis |
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Common Names |
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common plume moth (UK) morning-glory plume moth T-moth |
Glossary
Costal margin
The leading edge of the forewing of insects.
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos |
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Other Videos |
Common Plume Moth Emmelina monodactyla emerging |
About
Oct 20, 2016 Common plume moth emerging from pupa attached to bindweed leaf Buckfastleigh, Devon 10 October 2016 |
Morning Glory Plume Moth (Pterophoridae: Emmelina monodactyla) on Leaf |
About
May 29, 2012 Photographed at the Turtle River State Park, North Dakota (28 May 2012). |
T-Moth - Emmelina monodactyla |
About
Mar 30, 2015 T-moth: polilla con las alas en forma de T Kingdom: Animalia |
Emmelina monodactyla macro HD |
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Jul 4, 2013 Lépidoptère, Le Ptérophore commun (Emmelina monodactyla) est une espèce de lépidoptère de la famille des Pterophoridae |
Created: 10/22/2024 Last Updated: © MinnesotaSeasons.com. All rights reserved. |