''Pancalia leuwenhoekella'' 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 ...

in the family Cosmopterigidae.

Subspecies

Subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

include: *''Pancalia leuwenhoekella leuwenhoekella'' *''Pancalia leuwenhoekella japonica'' Riedl, 1973 (Japan: Honshu) *''Pancalia leuwenhoekella mandshuricella'' Sinev, 1985 (Russian Far East)

Distribution and habitat

This species is present in nearly all of Europe. In the east, the range extends to

Asia Minor Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

, the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

, south-western

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...

and the

Russian Far East The Russian Far East (russian: Дальний Восток России, r=Dal'niy Vostok Rossii, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in Northeast Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent; and is admini ...

. ''Pancalia leuwenhoekella'' prefers chalk and limestone habitats.

Description

''Pancalia leuwenhoekella'' has a

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 ...

of 10–12 mm. The head and thorax are dark bronzy-metallic. Antennae usually with white subapical band. Forewings are deep orange, margins more or less blackish; a narrow interrupted fascia at 1/4, a costal spot before middle and another inwardly oblique at 3/4, a dorsal median spot and an erect tornal mark pale golden-metallic, blackish-edged ; a whitish spot in cilia on posterior costal spot. Hindwings are rather dark bronzy-fuscous.Meyrick, E., 1895 ''A Handbook of British Lepidoptera'' MacMillan, Londo
pdf
Keys and description This species is very similar to '' Pancalia schwarzella ''.

Biology

The larva is dull purple - reddish, segmental incisions and wrinkles pale brownish-ochreous ; head pale yellowish-brown, darker-marked ; plate of 2 transparent. Adults are on wing from April to June.UKmoths
/ref> The larvae feed on ''

Viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...

'' species, including '' Viola tricolor'', ''

Viola hirta ''Viola hirta'' is a species of the plant genus ''Viola''. It is also called the hairy violet. As with the sweet violet, no fossil seeds of this species have been found. It is confined to the cold temperate zone, in Europe, north and west Asia, ...

'' and '' Viola canina''. They initially mine the leaf stem of their host plant. In this stage,

frass Frass refers loosely to the more or less solid excreta of insects, and to certain other related matter. Definition and etymology ''Frass'' is an informal term and accordingly it is variously used and variously defined. It is derived from the ...

is ejected out of the mine through a hole. Later, the larvae feed on the bast fibre of the subterranean parts of the plant from within a silken tunnel. Pupation takes place in a cocoon made of silk and covered with sand.microlepidoptera.nl

Bibliography

*Bradley, J.D.Checklist of Lepidoptera Recorded from The British Isles, Second Edition (Revised) (2000) *C. Koster, S. Yu. Sinev: Momphidae, Batrachedridae, Stathmopodidae, Agonoxenidae, Cosmopterigidae, Chrysopeleiidae. In: P. Huemer, O. Karsholt, L. Lyneborg (Hrsg.): Microlepidoptera of Europe. 1. Auflage. Band 5. Apollo Books, Stenstrup 2003, ISBN 87-88757-66-8, S. 93 *Emmet, A.M., Langmaid, J.R. (Eds.)The Moths and Butterflies of Great Britain and Ireland, Volume 4 (Part 1) (2002)

External links

Lepiforum Funet - Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and some other life forms''

References

Moths described in 1761 Antequerinae Moths of Europe Moths of Asia Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Antequerinae-stub