Pterophoridae : Pterophorinae
Common Plume
EMMELINA monodactyla (Linnaeus, 1758)
Common Plume
EMMELINA monodactyla (Linnaeus, 1758)
Life Cycle Guide-Imago Only
Description
Vernacular Names: Common Plume : T Moth : Morning Glory Plume Moth
Wingspan: 18-27mm
Worldwide Distribution: Europe : Africa : Asia : North America : Mexico
UK Distribution: Common throughout much of the British Isles
UK Conservation Status -
Habitat: Dry grassland : Gardens : Woodland clearings : Waste ground
Similar Species -
Overwintes as: Adult
Observations: The Common Plume Moth E.monodactyla is as the name suggests, common throughout Britain where its larval food plants,which are considerable, are found.
The latin name describes the wing shape very clearly when the moth is at rest as its appears to only have one (mono) finger (dactyl) although this is because the lightly coloured brown wing is highly rolled up and there are actually more fingers with thin feathery hairs which look much like the wings of a bird.
Another feature which is common in Plume moths are the spurs on each legs which in the case of this moth are of different lengths as can be clearly seen in photo 2.
The larvae of this moth are polyphageous using plants from many plant families including the Bindweeds,Heather,Goosefoot,Thistle and Nightshades.
This is hardly surprising as the moth is widespread across the world from Europe to both west and east to North America and Asia clearly increasing the plant families available.
Wingspan: 18-27mm
Worldwide Distribution: Europe : Africa : Asia : North America : Mexico
UK Distribution: Common throughout much of the British Isles
UK Conservation Status -
- Common = >300 10Km Squares
- Least Concern
- Phalaena monodactyla Linnæus, 1758
- Phalaena monodactyla Linnæus, 1758
- Europe
Habitat: Dry grassland : Gardens : Woodland clearings : Waste ground
Similar Species -
- None
Overwintes as: Adult
Observations: The Common Plume Moth E.monodactyla is as the name suggests, common throughout Britain where its larval food plants,which are considerable, are found.
The latin name describes the wing shape very clearly when the moth is at rest as its appears to only have one (mono) finger (dactyl) although this is because the lightly coloured brown wing is highly rolled up and there are actually more fingers with thin feathery hairs which look much like the wings of a bird.
Another feature which is common in Plume moths are the spurs on each legs which in the case of this moth are of different lengths as can be clearly seen in photo 2.
The larvae of this moth are polyphageous using plants from many plant families including the Bindweeds,Heather,Goosefoot,Thistle and Nightshades.
This is hardly surprising as the moth is widespread across the world from Europe to both west and east to North America and Asia clearly increasing the plant families available.
Photo Gallery
Larval Food Plants
Note - Plants hyperlinked in red below take the visitor to the relevant plant page on"Plants for a Future" website
where further information like photos,physical
characteristics,habitats,edible uses,medicinal
uses,cultivation,propagation,range,height etc. are clearly listed.
- Plant Families - in bold red below takes the visitor to the relevant "Lepi-plants" page where other butterflies & moths using the plants below are listed.
- Asteraceae - Compositae - Aster-Daisy - Sunflower Family
- Cynara cardunculus - Cardoon
- Cynara scolymus - Globe Artichoke
- Eupatorium purpureum - Gravel Root
- Chenopodiaceae - The Goosefoot Family
- Atriplex patula - Common Orache
- Chenopodium album - Lamb's Goosefoot - Fat-hen
- Convolvulaceae - Bindweed - Morning Glory Family
- Calystegia sepium - Hedge Bindweed
- Calystegia soldanella - Sea Bindweed
- Calystegia spithamaea - Upright Bindweed
- Calystegia subacaulis - Hillside False Bindweed
- Convolvulus arvensis - Field Bindweed
- Convolvulus cantabrica - Cantabrican Morning Glory
- Convolvulus tricolor - Dwarf Morning Glory
- Ipomoea batanas - Sweet Potato Vine
- Ipomoea eriocarpa - Tiny Morning Glory
- Ipomoea hederacea - Ivyleaf Morning Glory
- Ipomoea purpurea - Common Morning Glory
- Ericaceae - Heather Family
- Calluna vulgaris - Common Heather - Ling
- Vaccinium myrtilus - Bilberry - Blue Whortleberry
- Solanaceae - Nightshade Family
- Datura stramonium - Thorn Apple
- Hyoscyamus niger - Henbane
- Note - Larvae also feed on the following plant families
- Asteraceae - Compositae - Senecio - Ragworts & Groundsels
- Ericaceae - Vaccinium - Blueberry,Bilberries etc
- Polygonaceae - Polygonum - Knotweed & knotgrasses
- Note - Larvae also feed on the following plant families
Larval Food Plants
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Taxonomy
Kingdom:
Subkingdom: Phylum: Subphylum: Class: Order: Superfamily: Family: Subfamily: Genus: Accepted Species Name: Type Species - EMMELINA: Original Species Name: Species Names: Literary Ref: Type Locality: |
Animalia
Eumetozoa Arthropoda Hexapoda Insecta Lepidoptera Pterophoroidea Pterophoridae Pterophorinae EMMELINA Tutt, 1905 Emmelina monodactyla (Linnaeus, 1758) - Phalaena monodactyla Linnaeus, 1758 - PHALAENA monodactyla Linnæus, 1758 = Alucita monodactyla Linnaeus, 1758 = Phalaena bidactyla Hochenwarth, 1785 = albodactyla Fabricius, 1794 = Alucita pterodactyla Hübner, 1805 = Pterophorus flaveodactylus Amary, 1840 = Pterophorus cineridactylus Fitch, 1854 = Pterophorus naevosidactylus Fitch, 1854 = Pterophorus impersonalis Walker 1864 = Pterophorus pergracilidactylus Packard, 1873 = Pterophorus barberi Dyar, 1903 = Pterophorus pictipennis Grinnell, 1908 = Pterophorus monodactylus f. rufa Dufrane, 1960 - Syst. Nat. (Edn 10) 1 : Title Page : p.542 - n.300 - Europe |