| Meal Moth (Pyralis farinalis (Linnaeus, 1758)) |
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Scientific name: Pyralis farinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) Common name: Meal Moth French name: Pyrale de la farine Order: Lepidoptera Suborder: Heterocera Family: Pyralidae Subfamily: Pyralinae Wingspan: 18-30 mm. Biotope: The Meal Moth is often found inside houses, barns and grain silos, or in their neighbourhood. Geographic area: Worldwide widespread because of the transportation of grains. Flight time: May to October. Number of generations : Under favourable conditions, the complete development cycle can only last 6 to 8 weeks. Caterpillar: A creamy colour with a brown head. The two first segments following the head and the last one may be darker. This caterpillar can reach a size of 2 cm. Host plant: The caterpillar grows in stocks of grains and dry fruits. It produces silken webbing, binding damp grains together. It is considered as a pest. |
The Meal Moth shows brown fore wings crossed by two thin curved white lines. These lines separate a dark brown basal zone and a dark brown apical zone. The median zone is a cream colour. The hind wings are pale brown and also crossed by paler wavy lines. You can often observe females landed with the abdomen tip upturned. |
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I have shot this picture of a Meal Moth in an old farm where people haven't been storing any grains for more than twenty years. |
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I have found this Meal Moth inside the compost tank. |
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Here is the typical position of the female with the abdomen tip upturned. |
André Bon January 2013