pondside pyralid moth

LC - Least Concern

NNR - Unranked

SNR - Unranked

not listed

Pondside pyralid moth, sometimes called pondside crambid moth, is a small, common, and widespread moth. It occurs in the United States and southern Canada east of the great Plains and in the Pacific Northwest. All species in the subfamily Acentropinae are found exclusively in wetlands and aquatic habitats. Pondside pyralid larvae are found in ponds and other habitats with standing water that supports aquatic vegetation. They feed on aquatic plants, including buckbeen, watershield, duckweed, water clover, American eelgrass, pondweeds, and aquatic sedges. Adults are found from June to September flying over or near the edges of those same habitats.

Adults are 5⁄16″ to ⅝″ (8 to 15 mm) in length and have a ⅝″ to 1″ (16 to 26 mm) wingspan.

The forewings and hindwings are intricately patterned with numerous white and black markings over a background that can be light yellow, light brown, yellowish-orange, or brownish-orange. The background color varies between geographical regions, but the pattern of markings is consistent.

On the forewing the basal area is crossed by three white bars and has one large white spot. Near the middle of the leading edge (costal margin) there is an oblique black line followed by a white triangular patch. In the same area but near the inner margin there is a large, round, white patch. Just inside the patch there is a bold, black circle that is incomplete near the inner margin. In the postmedial area there is a wavy, W-shaped black line extending from the costal margin to about the middle of the wing. There is a white patch on the outer half behind the line, and another white patch on the inner half before the line. In the subterminal area there is a wavy black line bordered on the inside by white.

The hindwing is similarly marked. There is a broad white band across the median area bordered above and below by a bold black line.

The fringe of both wings is checkered basal color and white, with some black marks.

Total length: 5⁄16″ to ⅝″ (8 to 15 mm)

Wingspan: ⅝″ to 1″ (16 to 26 mm)

Ponds and other habitats with standing water and aquatic vegetation

June to September

Larvae construct protective, oblong cases from plant material held together with silk.

Adults are active during the day but are also attracted to lights. When at rest the wings may be widely spread, tightly folded into a triangular shape, or somewhere in between.

Aquatic plants, including buckbeen, watershield, duckweed, water clover, American eelgrass, pondweeds, and aquatic sedges

Sources

4, 21, 27, 29, 30, 75, 82, 83.

Common

This species was formerly classified as Munroessa icciusalis. In 2005 the genera Munroessa and Synclita were synonymized with Elophila.

The genus Elophila is included within the family Crambidae (crambid snout moths), sister to the family Pyralidae (pyralid snout moths). The common name “pondside pyralid moth” is a misnomer, in that it suggests that the species is included in the family Pyralidae. Two sources, iNaturalist and Peterson’s Field Guide to Moths of Northeastern North America (Beedle & Leckie, 2012), use the common name pondside crambid moth or pondside crambid. Almost all other sources use the common name pondside pyralid moth or pondside pyralid.

Elophila icciusalis (Pondside Pyralid)