Just
wondering whether anyone recognises this? It's attached to an egg box in my
moth trap - may have been there a while as it's only about 6mm long and very
well camouflaged, so could easily have been overlooked..
Am
guessing it's a pupa in a net-like cocoon, and it has 2 dark stripes on its
upper side, and possibly another two below.
There's
a picture of a Schreckensteinia festaliella larva ready for pupation in the
Field Guide to Micro Moths book (thanks Paul), showing the net-like cocoon, but I can't find
a convincingly striped larva/pupa photo.
Plutella xylostella makes a similar
net case, but again haven't found any pictures where the stripes are evident -
I guess it may change colour during the process - one site (bugguide.net - an
American website) stated that a pupa had changed from whitish to very dark overnight.
Guess rearing it on may be the only way, and I'm having a go, but it will be
good to get folks' thoughts.
I've
no idea how it came to be attached to the egg box!
Hello Sue,
ReplyDeleteYes, due to the lack of more good photos of possible species, this becomes quite a hard task to nail down the id. I would suggest that the best way forward is as you've suggested to rear it through.
I would suggest in a pot with some damp moss, secure with a plastic bag, then put in a cool place out of any direct sunlight - check it regularly.
Peter.