__NOTOC__ ''Argyresthia curvella'' is a species of ermine moth ( family Yponomeutidae). It belongs to

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

Argyresthiinae, which is sometimes elevated to full family rank in the superfamily

Yponomeutoidea Yponomeutoidea is a superfamily of ermine moths and relatives. There are about 1,800 species of Yponomeutoids worldwide, most of them known to come from temperate regions. This superfamily is one of the earliest groups to evolve external feeding ...

. It is commonly called apple blossom tineid, reflecting the fact that it was originally believed to be a

tineid moth Tineidae is a family of moths in the order Lepidoptera described by Pierre André Latreille in 1810. Collectively, they are known as fungus moths or tineid moths. The family contains considerably more than 3,000 species in more than 300 genera. ...

(family Tinieidae).Savela, Markku (2002): Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and some other life forms &ndash
''Argyresthia curvella''
Version of 2002-NOV-02. Retrieved 2010-MAY-05. This small moth is widespread in northwestern Eurasia. It is absent from Iberia and probably the entire Balkans, and generally ranges southwards only to the northern Mediterranean region; a possibly isolated population occurs in the Caucasus region. Where it occurs, it is usually not rare and may be abundant. The

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

adults are attracted to light sources; they are on the wing around June/July or somewhat later, depending on the location.Kimber, Ian (2010): UKMoths &ndash
''Argyresthia curvella''
Retrieved 2010-MAY-05. The wingspan of adults is 10–12 mm. As usual for Yponomeutidae, the forewings have a bold black-and-white pattern, which fades easily in museum

specimen Specimen may refer to: Science and technology * Sample (material), a limited quantity of something which is intended to be similar to and represent a larger amount * Biological specimen or biospecimen, an organic specimen held by a biorepository ...

s though. The pattern consists of a thick oblique black line running from the center of the forewings' dorsal margin to somewhat nearer the apex on the costal margin. From the apex, a thinner and often somewhat irregular black band extends to meet the first one. The remaining areas of the forewings are generously sprinkled with small black blotches. The hindwings are pale greyish, as is the body. The

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

s feed on '' Malus'' (apple) trees, where they eat the

blossom In botany, blossoms are the flowers of stone fruit trees (genus ''Prunus'') and of some other plants with a similar appearance that flower profusely for a period of time in spring. Colloquially, flowers of orange are referred to as such as wel ...

s; it has also been suspected that they eat rotting apple wood at least occasionally. They may become a

pest Pest or The Pest may refer to: Science and medicine * Pest (organism), an animal or plant deemed to be detrimental to humans or human concerns ** Weed, a plant considered undesirable * Infectious disease, an illness resulting from an infection ** ...

in apple orchards, if they occur in abundance.

Synonyms

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scientific name In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

s (

junior synonym The Botanical and Zoological Codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. * In botanical nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that applies to a taxon that (now) goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linna ...

s and others) of the apple blossom tineid are: * ''Argyresthia cornella'' (''auct. non''

Fabricius Fabricius ( la, smith, german: Schmied, Schmidt) is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *people from the Ancient Roman gens Fabricia: **Gaius Fabricius Luscinus, the first of the Fabricii to move to Rome * Johann Goldsmid (1587� ...

, 1775: misidentification) * ''Phalaena curvella'' Linnaeus, 1761 * ''Tinea arcella''

, 1776 * '' Tinea cornella'' (''auct. non''

, 1775: misidentification) The species has been confused with the somewhat similar and fairly closely related hawthorn moth (''Scythropia crataegella'') – the actual species described as ''Tinea cornella'' by J.C. Fabricius in 1775 – even in recent times.FE (2004)

References

External links

waarneming.nl

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2263881 Argyresthia Moths described in 1761 Moths of Europe Moths of Asia Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus