Acompsia cinerella explained

Acompsia cinerella, the ash-coloured sober, is a small lepidopteran species of the twirler moth family (Gelechiidae). It is the type species of the genus Acompsia, once assigned to the subfamily Anacampsinae but generally placed in the Dichomeridinae. The species was first described by Carl Alexander Clerck in 1759.

Distribution

This species can be found in most of Europe, except for Portugal and Iceland.^[1]

Habitat

These moths inhabit a variety of areas, preferably with rich vegetation or bushes.^[2]

Description

Acompsia cinerella has a wingspan of 16–19 mm. These moths have long upwardly-curved labial palps. The forewings show a brownish colour, without any marking.^[3] This species is rather similar to Helcystogramma rufescens.^[4]

Biology

There are two generations per year, as it is a bivoltine species. Adults are on wing from May to September. The larvae feed on moss present on trunks of broad leaves trees, often at the base of the tree.^{[3] [5] [6]}

Bibliography

• Erstbeschreibung: Clerck, C. (1759): Icones Insectorum rariorum Cum Nominibus eorum trivialibus, locisqve e C. LinnaeiArch. R. et Eqv. Aur. Syst. Nat. allegatis. Sectio Prima: [8 unpaginierte Textseiten], pl. 1-16. Holmiae. — Digitalisat der Bibliothèque nationale de France.
• Lectotypus-Festlegung: Robinson, G. S. & E. Schmidt Nielsen (1983): The Microlepidoptera described by Linnaeus and Clerck. — Systematic Entomology 8: 191–242.

External links

• Lepiforum e. V.
• Insects of the British Isles

Notes and References

1. https://fauna-eu.org/cdm_dataportal/taxon/51e856f4-34c9-4b26-a222-6896910562a8 Fauna Europaea
2. http://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/acompsia-cinerella Nature Spot
3. Web site: Kimber . Ian . 35.026 BF855 Acompsia cinerella (Clerck, 1759) . UKMoths . 12 July 2020.
4. http://www.hantsmoths.org.uk/species/0855.php "35.026 [B&F: 0855] ''Acompsia cinerella'' (Clerck, 1759)"]. Hantsmoths. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
5. Web site: LOT Moths and Butterflies . 2017-09-14 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170914172617/http://www.lotmoths.com/species/species.php?frmSpeciesID=712 . 2017-09-14 . dead .
6. https://books.google.com/books?id=I9YUAAAAIAAJ&dq=Acompsia+cinerella+wingspan&pg=PA1003 Keys to the Insects of the European Part of the USSR.: Lepidoptera. Part II