Stigmella crataegella is a moth of the family Nepticulidae found in Europe. It was described by the Austrian entomologist Josef Wilhelm Klimesch in 1936. The larvae mine the leaves of hawthorns.
| Stigmella crataegella | |
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| larva | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nepticulidae |
| Genus: | Stigmella |
| Species: | S. crataegella
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| Binomial name | |
| Stigmella crataegella | |
| Synonyms | |
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Life cycle
editThe wingspan is 4–5 mm. The head is black, the collar white. The antennal eyecaps are white. The forewings are a shining golden brown basal to a brassy fascia. Distad beyond this is dark purple brown.The hindwings are grey brown. Male has black scent scales[2] [3]
Adults are on wing from May to early June. There is one generation per year.
- Ovum
Eggs are laid on the underside of hawthorn leaves, at the base of the leaf, close to the midrib.[4]
- Larvae
Larvae feed from June to August and are bright green with a transparent green head; the mandibles are pale brown. They feed on Crataegus laciniata, woodland hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata), common hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), small-flowered black hawthorn (Crataegus pentagyna), river hawthorn (Crataegus rivularis), littlehip hawthorn (Crataegus spathulata) and Crataemespilus grandiflora. They mine the leaves of their host plant.[4][5][6]
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Stigmella crataegella mine. Note the initial narrow gallery. -
Stigmella perpygmaeella mine.
- Pupa
The cocoon is reddish-brown and spun either on or below the surface.[4]
Distribution
editThe moth is found from Fennoscandia to the Iberian Peninsula, Italy and Macedonia, and from Ireland to Poland and Romania.[1]
Stigmella crataegella was originally named Nepticula crataegella by Josef Wilhelm Klimesch in 1936, from a specimen found in the Tyrol, Austria. Nepticula, refers to a grand daughter, the smallest member of a family (i.e. the small size of the moth), while crataegella refers to the genus of the food plant. The genus Stigmella – ″stigma″, refers to the conspicuous (or occasionally metallic) small dot or a brand fascia on the forewing of many of the Stigmella species, or possibly the small size of the moths.[7]
References
edit- ^ a b "Stigmella crataegella (Klimesch, 1936)". Fauna Europaea. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
- ^ Zagulajev, A.K., 1987 Nepticulidae (Stigmellidae); in G.S. Medvedev (ed.): Keys to the insects of the europaean part of the USSR, Vol.IV: Lepidoptera, part 1 (english translation), Oxonian Press Pvt.Ltd., New Dehli, 1987
- ^ lepiforum.de includes images
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ a b c Emmet, A M (1983). Nepticulidae. In The Moths and Butterflies of Great Britain and Ireland. Volume 1. Colchester: Harley Books. p. 258. ISBN 0-946589-15-1.
- ^ Ellis, W N. "Stigmella crataegella (Klimesch, 1936) common thorn pigmy". Plant Parasites of Europe. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
- ^ Kimber, Ian. "4.023 BF108 Stigmella crataegella (Klimesch, 1936)". UKmoths. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ Emmet, A Maitland (1991). The Scientific Names of the British Lepidoptera. Their history and meaning. Colchester: Harley Books. pp. 45 & 47. ISBN 0-946589-35-6.