Catoptria falsella

• Subfamily: Crambinae
• Wingspan: 16-24 mm
• Flight period: Jun - Sep
• Spread: Common
• Host plants: Pottiaceae

Information

The Catoptria falsella is a moth of the Crambidae family, subfamily Crambinae, with a wingspan of 16-24 mm.
It is distributed throughout Europe with the exception of Ireland and Ukraine. In Italy it is also present in the islands. *

The front wings are brown and cream in color, the distinguishable feature of this moth is the short white side stripe that breaks in half to form a profile knife-shaped, it is abruptly stopped by an area of ​​dark spots which is adjacent to a large white area with brown dust along the veins, highlighted by a thin black line.
The edge is brown, interspersed with white spots of different sizes on the fringes of the wings. The hind wings are translucent white, with shades and a slight brown border.

This moth flies from June to September depending on the location and is attracted to artificial light. The Catoptria falsella is mainly nocturnal and during the day it hides in the moss where present, straw or haystacks. The larva feeds by moving in a silk tube where pupation takes place.

The larvae feed on mosses that grow on the walls such as Barbula sp. and in particular the moss Tortula muralis


* Lepidoptera mundi https://lepidoptera.eu/ - Fauna Europea https://fauna-eu.org/