''Monopis imella'' is a

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 ...

of the family

Tineidae 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. ...

found in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan of ...

is 11–15 mm. Originally discovered in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

around 1858, the Monopis Imella is an indistinctive species that has a yellowish bunch of scales located on the head, and a white line across its

costa Costa may refer to: Biology * Rib (Latin: ''costa''), in vertebrate anatomy * Costa (botany), the central strand of a plant leaf or thallus * Costa (coral), a stony rib, part of the skeleton of a coral * Costa (entomology), the leading edge of th ...

. There can sometimes be a pale spot on the forewing but usually the forewing looks plain. The larvae of the moth feed on animal and plant remains, particularly feathers, hair and fur. The Adulthood stage occurs between June–September, possibly in two different generations. This species has a large distribution across the British Isles, but overall is mostly uncommon Compared to other species it is nationally scarce, but most commonly found near the sea along in more wild habits compared to other British species of the same genus. Location: Found in

, mostly scattered across the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

. Very scarce, extremely rare.

References

Tineinae Moths of Europe Moths of Asia Moths described in 1813 {{Tineidae-stub