Stigmella malella | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Nepticulidae |
Genus: | Stigmella |
Species: | S. malella
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Binomial name | |
Stigmella malella = (
Stainton, 1854)
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Synonyms | |
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The banded apple pigmy (Stigmella malella) is a moth of the family Nepticulidae. It is found in almost all of Europe, except Iceland and Norway. [1]
The wingspan is 4–6 millimetres (0.16–0.24 in).The head is ferruginous -ochreous, the collar whitish. The antennal eyecaps whitish, and the forewings dark fuscous ; a shining white fascia beyond the middle. Hindwings grey. [2] Adults are on wing from April to August.
The larvae feed on Malus x astracanica, Malus baccata, Malus domestica, Malus floribunda, Malus fusca, Malus ringo, Malus sylvestris and sometimes Prunus. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine consists of a corridor, sometimes widening only a little but sometimes very wide. At times ending in a secondary blotch. The frass is concentrated in a narrow central line. [3]