Micropterix calthella
Micropterix calthella | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Micropterigidae |
Genus: | Micropterix |
Species: | M. calthella |
Binomial name | |
Micropterix calthella (Linnaeus, 1761) | |
Synonyms | |
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Micropterix calthella, the marsh marigold moth, is a species of moth belonging to the family Micropterigidae. It is found in damp habitats throughout Europe (except for the far south) and is also distributed eastwards to central Siberia.
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Illustration from John Curtis's British Entomology Volume 6
This rather small moth has a forewing length of up to 4.6 millimetres (0.18 in) and a wingspan of 8–10 millimetres (0.31–0.39 in).[1] This is one of the more plainly marked Micropterix species of Europe, with rather dark bronze-coloured forewings with distinctive purple bases. Like other members of the family, this species has functional jaws and it feeds as an adult on pollen grains from a wide variety of plants such as Acer, Ajuga, Caltha, Cardamine, Carex, Crataegus, Mercurialis and Ranunculus.
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Micropterix calthella - Lissan House, Cookstown, Northern Ireland; feeding on pollen of Ranunculus repens.
References
- ↑ "Micropterix calthella". UK Moths. Retrieved July 16, 2009.
External links
- Micropterix calthella on Fauna Europaea
- Micropterix calthella at Naturhistoriska riksmuseet
Further reading
- Zeller-Lukashort, H. Christof; et al. (2007). "A review of Micropterix Hübner, 1825 from northern and central Europe (Micropterigidae)" (PDF). Nota Lepidopterologica. 30 (2): 235–298.
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