''Nemapogon granella'' (European grain worm or European grain moth) is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of tineoid moth. It belongs to the

fungus 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 Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

(Tineidae), and therein to the subfamily

Nemapogoninae Nemapogoninae is a fungus moth subfamily of the family Tineidae. It was described by Hinton in 1955. Genera * ''Archinemapogon'' * '' Dinica'' * '' Emmochlista'' * '' Gaedikeia'' * '' Hyladaula'' * ''Nemapogon'' * '' Nemaxera'' * '' Neurothaumas ...

. It is the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

of its

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

Nemapogon __NOTOC__ ''Nemapogon'' is a genus of the fungus moth family, Tineidae. Therein, it belongs to the subfamily Nemapogoninae. As evident by its name, it is the type genus of its subfamily. Species As of 2007, 69 species of ''Nemapogon'' had be ...

'', and via that also of the subfamily Nemapogoninae. It is also the type species of the proposed genera ''Brosis'' (as established by J. Hübner, a

junior homonym In biology, a homonym is a name for a taxon that is identical in spelling to another such name, that belongs to a different taxon. The rule in the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature is that the first such name to be published is the se ...

and thus invalid) and ''Diaphthirusa'', which are consequently

junior objective 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, Linnae ...

s of ''Nemapogon''.

Ecology and description

This

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...

ranges widely across the western

Palearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...

. However, even in its native range its distribution is somewhat patchy; in the UK for example, it is widespread, but may still be locally absent. It has not been recorded from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, but this may simply be due to its being overlooked or confused with similar species than being genuinely absent, as it is found in the neighboring countries. Its apparent absence from

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

, on the other hand, is more likely genuine. But this

synanthropic A synanthrope (from the Greek σύν ''syn'', "together with" + ἄνθρωπος ''anthropos'', "man") is a member of a species of wild animal or plant that lives near, and benefits from, an association with human beings and the somewhat artific ...

moth has been distributed essentially all over the globe, though many such introduced

population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...

s are not stable for long periods of time. Still, it is regularly found in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

for example, about as far away from its native range as is possible on

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

. The adults are most often seen throughout the summer months, e.g. from March to September in the UK. Naturally, populations associated with humans can be encountered at any time of the year.

This small moth has a wingspan of 10–18 mm. The forewings are irregularly mottled black, white and grey, resembling close relatives such as the

cork moth ''Nemapogon cloacella'', the cork moth, is a species of tineoid moth. It belongs to the fungus moth family (Tineidae), and therein to the subfamily Nemapogoninae. Its junior synonym ''N. infimella'' was established by G.H. Heydenreich in t ...

(''N. cloacella''). They have a row of large black spots on the leading edge, which merge with spots within the wing to form a rough band zigzagging along the length of the forewings. The hindwings are uniformly greyish-brown and surrounded by a fringe of long hairs. On the head, the adults have a tuft of yellowish-white hairs.Kimber

010 010 may refer to: * 10 (number) * 8 (number) in octal numeral notation * Motorola 68010, a microprocessor released by Motorola in 1982 * 010, the telephone area code of Beijing * 010, the Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the R ...

/ref> 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 ...

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

e eat rotting wood in the wild, though they prefer

bracket fungi Polypores are a group of fungi that form large fruiting bodies with pores or tubes on the underside (see Delimitation for exceptions). They are a morphological group of basidiomycetes-like gilled mushrooms and hydnoid fungi, and not all polypor ...

, usually

Polyporales The Polyporales are an order of about 1800 species of fungi in the division Basidiomycota. The order includes some (but not all) polypores as well as many corticioid fungi and a few agarics (mainly in the genus ''Lentinus''). Many species within ...

. Their mainstay food included

Polyporaceae The Polyporaceae are a family of poroid fungi belonging to the Basidiomycota. The flesh of their fruit bodies varies from soft (as in the case of the dryad's saddle illustrated) to very tough. Most members of this family have their hymeniu ...

such as sulphur polypore (''Laetiporus sulphureus''), dryad's saddle (''Polyporus squamosus'') or turkey tail (''Trametes versicolor''), as well as

Fomitopsidaceae The Fomitopsidaceae are a family of fungi in the order Polyporales. Most species are parasitic on woody plants, and tend to cause brown rots. The name comes from ''Fomitopsis'' (meaning "looking like Fomes") + ''-aceae'' (a suffix used to form t ...

, e.g. birch polypore (''Piptoporus betulinus''). But they have also been found on ''

Serpula lacrymans ''Serpula lacrymans'' is one of the fungi that cause damage to timber referred to as dry rot. It is a basidiomycete in the order Boletales. The ''Serpula lacrymans'' has the ability to rapidly colonise sites through unique and highly specialise ...

'' of the quite unrelated

Boletales The Boletales are an order of Agaricomycetes containing over 1300 species with a diverse array of fruiting body types. The boletes are the best known members of this group, and until recently, the Boletales were thought to only contain boletes. T ...

.Grabe (1942), Kimber

and see references in Savela (2009) Larvae in association with humans will feed on a variety of dry organic material, such as

dried fruit Dried fruit is fruit from which the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to th ...

(e.g.

bilberries Bilberries (), or sometimes European blueberries, are a primarily Eurasian species of low-growing shrubs in the genus ''Vaccinium'' (family Ericaceae), bearing edible, dark blue berries. The species most often referred to is ''Vaccinium myrtillu ...

, ''Vaccinium'') and

mushroom A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the name "mushroom" is t ...

cereal A cereal is any Poaceae, grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, Cereal germ, germ, and bran. Cereal Grain, grain crops are grown in greater quantit ...

and

legume A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock f ...

seeds,

flour Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many culture ...

, Topinambur (''Helianthus tuberosus'') stalks, and even

cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

(e.g.

s of wine and champagne bottles) and the

ergot Ergot ( ) or ergot fungi refers to a group of fungi of the genus ''Claviceps''. The most prominent member of this group is ''Claviceps purpurea'' ("rye ergot fungus"). This fungus grows on rye and related plants, and produces alkaloids that ca ...

fungus ''

Claviceps purpurea ''Claviceps purpurea'' is an ergot fungus that grows on the ears of rye and related cereal and forage plants. Consumption of grains or seeds contaminated with the survival structure of this fungus, the ergot sclerotium, can cause ergotism in hu ...

''. Further records have been claimed from ''

Capsicum annuum ''Capsicum annuum'' is a species of the plant genus ''Capsicum'' native to southern North America, the Caribbean, and northern South America. This species is the most common and extensively cultivated of the five domesticated capsicums. The spec ...

'' fruit,

poppyseed Poppy seed is an oilseed obtained from the opium poppy (''Papaver somniferum''). The tiny, kidney-shaped seeds have been harvested from dried seed pods by various civilizations for thousands of years. It is still widely used in many countrie ...

(''Papaver somniferum''),

bitter almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...

s (''Prunus amygdalus amara'') and

beeswax Beeswax (''cera alba'') is a natural wax produced by honey bees of the genus ''Apis''. The wax is formed into scales by eight wax-producing glands in the abdominal segments of worker bees, which discard it in or at the hive. The hive workers ...

, but it is not clear if they refer to this species or the cork moth.

Synonyms

This widespread, often common and partially

has been described times and again under a variety of

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, all now obsolete. In addition, it has been affected by the common problem of ''

'', namely uncertainty whether their

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

s were of male and female

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures u ...

, ending in ''-us'' or ''-a''.

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 other obsolete scientific names of the European grain moth are:ABRS (2008b), Robinson

/ref>

* ''Nemapogon costotristrigella'' (Chambers, 1873) * ''Nemapogon costistrigella'' (lapsus) * ''Nemapogon domesticella'' (Scopoli, 1763) * ''Nemapogon fascomaculella'' (lapsus) * ''Nemapogon fenestrella'' (Scopoli, 1763b) (non Scopoli, 1763a:

preoccupied 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, Linn ...

) * ''Nemapogon fuscicomella'' (Wörz, 1958) * ''Nemapogon fuscomaculella'' (Chambers, 1873) * ''Nemapogon granellus'' (lapsus) * ''Nemapogon mancuniella'' (Hodgkinson, 1880) * ''Nemapogon marmorella'' (Chambers, 1875) * ''Nemapogon nebulosella'' (Geoffroy in Fourcroy, 1785) * ''Nemapogon granella nigra'' (Dufrane, 1955) * ''Nemapogon nigroatomella'' (Dietz, 1905) * ''Nemapogon tesserella'' (Fabricius, 1794) * ''Phalaena domesticella'' Scopoli, 1763 * '' Phalaena fenestrella'' Scopoli, 1763b (non Scopoli, 1763a: preoccupied) * ''Phalaena (Tinea) granella'' Linnaeus, 1758 * ''Tinea costotristrigella'' Chambers, 1873 * ''Tinea fuscicomella'' Wörz, 1958 * ''Tinea fuscomaculella'' Chambers, 1873 * ''Tinea granella'' Linnaeus, 1758 * ''Tinea granella nigra'' Dufrane, 1955 * ''Tinea mancuniella'' Hodgkinson, 1880 * ''Tinea marmorella'' Chambers, 1875 * ''Tinea nebulosella'' Geoffroy in Fourcroy, 1785 * ''Tinea nigroatomella'' Dietz, 1905 * ''Tinea tesserella'' Fabricius, 1794 The supposed subspecies ''nigra'' form

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

has turned out to be a chance

form Form is the shape, visual appearance, or configuration of an object. In a wider sense, the form is the way something happens. Form also refers to: *Form (document), a document (printed or electronic) with spaces in which to write or enter data ...

, rather than a distinct population.

Footnotes

References

Australian Biological Resources Study Australian Biological Resources Study (ABRS) is a project undertaken by Parks Australia Division of Australia's Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA). Background ABRS was founded in 1973 from the recommendations ...

(ABRS) (2008a): Australian Faunal Directory &ndash
''Nemapogon''
Version of 2008-OCT-09. Retrieved 2010-MAY-06. *

(ABRS) (2008b): Australian Faunal Directory &ndash
''Nemapogon granella''
Version of 2008-OCT-09. Retrieved 2010-MAY-06. *

Fauna Europaea Fauna Europaea is a database of the scientific names and distribution of all living multicellular European land and fresh-water animals. It serves as a standard taxonomic source for animal taxonomy within the Pan-European Species directories Infras ...

(FE) (2009)
''Nemapogon granella''
Version 2.1, 2009-DEC-22. Retrieved 2010-MAY-06. * Grabe, Albert (1942): Eigenartige Geschmacksrichtungen bei Kleinschmetterlingsraupen Strange tastes among micromoth caterpillars" ''Zeitschrift des Wiener Entomologen-Vereins'' 27: 105-109

n German N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

br>PDF fulltext
* Kimber, Ian

UKmoths &ndash
''Nemapogon granella''
Retrieved 2010-MAY-06. * Pitkin, Brian & Jenkins, Paul (2004a)
Butterflies and Moths of the World, Generic Names and their Type-species
&ndash
''Brosis'' Hübner, 1822
Version of 2004-NOV-05. Retrieved 2010-MAY-06. * Pitkin, Brian & Jenkins, Paul (2004b)
Butterflies and Moths of the World, Generic Names and their Type-species
&ndash
''Diaphthirusa''
Version of 2004-NOV-05. Retrieved 2010-MAY-06. * Pitkin, Brian & Jenkins, Paul (2004c)
Butterflies and Moths of the World, Generic Names and their Type-species
&ndash
''Nemapogon''
Version of 2004-NOV-05. Retrieved 2010-MAY-06. * Robinson, Gaden S.

br>Global Taxonomic Database of Tineidae (Lepidoptera)
&ndash
''Nemapogon granella''
Retrieved 2010-MAY-06. * Savela, Markku (2003): Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and some other life forms &ndash

'sic''">sic.html" ;"title="'sic">'sic'' Version of 2003-DEC-27. Retrieved 2010-MAY-06.

External links

Lepidoptera of Belgium

Lepiforum de

{{Taxonbar, from=Q391611 Nemapogoninae Moths described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Moths of Asia Moths of Africa Moths of Europe Moths of Oceania