Chilo phragmitellus f. intermediellus Raebel, 1925
Chilo phragmitellus f. nigricellus Raebel, 1925
Palparia rhombea Haworth, 1811
Topeutis phragmitalis Hübner, 1825
Chilo phragmitella is a species of moth of the family Crambidae, sometimes referred to by the vernacular nameswainscot veneer[1] or reed veneer.[2] It was first described by Jacob Hübner between 1805 and 1810 as Tinea phragmitella, and is the type species of the genus Chilo.[3]
Chilo phragmitella occurs in wetland habitats with reed beds and paddy fields, and can be found in much of Europe, including Great-Britain, and parts of Asia.
Original description
Date of original description
The species was, as Tinea phragmitella,[4] first described by Jacob Hübner in his work Sammlung europäischer Schmetterlinge,[3] a multi-volume work with publication dates from 1793 to 1841.[5]Francis Hemming, in his 1937 systematic treatment[a] of the entomological works of Jacob Hübner, narrowed the range of years in which the description of Tinea phragmitella may have been published to 1805–1810.[5]
Etymology
The specific name phragmitella refers to the species' larval food source.[6]
Distribution and habitat
Chilo phragmitella occurs in most of Europe,[4] including the British Isles.[7] It is also known from parts of Asia, including Iran,[8][9] Iraq,[9] Japan[9] and China.[9] It is found in wetlands with large reed beds[10] and paddy fields.[8]
Behaviour and appearance
Fig. 7 depicts a larva of C. phragmitella, 7a a larva of C. phragmitella after its final moult, and 7b depicts a reed containing a larva
Immature stages
Larvae are whitish and feed internally from stem and rootstock of common reed (Phragmites australis) and reed sweet-grass (Glyceria maxima).[7][11] Larvae take two years to mature.[12][13]
Prior to pupation, the larva creates a hole in the stem to exit from as moth. Pupation occurs within the stem beneath the exit created by the larva.[7][14]
Adult
Adults are sexually dimorphic, with smaller, darker males. Wingspan is respectively 24–32 mm for males and 30–40 mm for females.[7] Both sexes have long labial palpi.[11] Female specimens of Chilo phragmitella may resemble those of Donacaula forficella.[6]
In Great-Britain, adults are on wing from June to July in a single generation.[7]
Handbook of British Lepidoptera
The following description of Chilo phragmitella was published in Edward Meyrick's 1895 A Handbook of British Lepidoptera:[15]
The face with a conical horny projection. The labial palpi longer than head and thorax. Forewings in female much narrower and more acute than in male; pale ochreous, more or less suffused with brown, especially in male, tending to form dark streaks on and between veins; a dark fuscous discal dot; termen sinuate. Hindwings are pale whitish-ochreous or whitish, The larva is ochreous -whitish; dorsal, subdorsal, and lateral lines reddish -brown; head and plate of 2 yellowish -brown.
^Francis, Hemming (1937). Hübner: a bibliographical and systematic account of the entomological works of Jacob Hübner and of the supplements thereto by Carl Geyer, Gottfried Franz von Frölich and Gottlieb August Wilhelm Herrich-Schäffer. Royal Entomological Society of London.
^ abMuus, T.S.T.; Corver, S.C. (2022). "Chilo phragmitella (Hubner, 1810)". Microlepidoptera.nl, atlas van de kleine vlinders in Nederland (in Dutch). Retrieved 24 August 2022.
^ abcdeGoater, Barry (1986). British Pyralid Moths. Harley Books. pp. 22–23. ISBN0946589089.
^Meyrick, E., 1895 A Handbook of British Lepidoptera MacMillan, London pdf This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Keys and description
^Mark Parsons, Sean Clancy, David Wilson A Guide to the Pyralid and Crambid Moths of Britain and Ireland: Atropos, England. ISBN:9780955108648
