Tineola bisselliella

Webbing Clothes Moth at Conder, ACT

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Identification history

Tineola bisselliella	17 Feb 2020	GlennCocking
Edosa ochracea	5 Feb 2020	ibaird
Edosa ochracea	4 Feb 2020	GlennCocking
Unidentified	4 Feb 2020	MichaelBedingfield

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User's notes

Size - 5mm..... Conder, ACT

21 comments

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

4 Feb 2020

Note that the colour in the photo is much darker than reality. The background was white paper, and the moth was a light brown or off-white. The length of body and wings was only 5mm.
These moths are only found inside my house and there a quite a lot of them.

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

4 Feb 2020

Do these guys eat clothes? If so how do get rid of them?

donhe wrote:

5 Feb 2020

Little is known of the biology of most moths.
Most were named and classified by study of adult specimens.
Can you capture some of these moths, and see if you can get a female to lay some eggs, then offer the larvae various food-stuffs, and see what they accept? Note that the Tineidae larvae that are known to attack textiles only eat animal hair like wool, not cotton or polyester, etc.

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

5 Feb 2020

So far, over several months, I've had dozens of them in my house. The most notable behaviour is that they like to hide in dark places and that they like to rest on cotton towels or blankets. They tend to come out of hiding at night. I've not seen any larvae.

GlennCocking wrote:

5 Feb 2020

Unfortunately, it sounds like you're likely to have some larvae somewhere!

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

6 Feb 2020

Is there an easy way do get rid of them?

donhe wrote:

6 Feb 2020

Fumigation will not kill all the eggs. Freezing the clothes will not kill eggs in crannies.
Actually : yes. Dump all clothes and carpets and curtains etc that contain of animal fibres like wool, and replace them all by cotton and synthetics.

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

6 Feb 2020

Thanks for humorous suggestion Don. Unfortunately in Canberra's winters woollen garments are essential for my survival. I'll just have to try to minimise the population.

donhe wrote:

7 Feb 2020

Try this one: wait for a winter day when the air temperature is below -10, and open all doors , windows, cupboard and wardrobe doors and drawers, etc, and let nature do the job for you.

Or: put all your clothes in the freezer for a spell, and meanwhile spray alcohol (eg methys, perfume, vodka) into all joints and crannies in your wardrobe and nearby in the room where they are occurring.

donhe wrote:

7 Feb 2020

Actually this may all be for nought, as Edosa ochracea larvae may not be lanaphagous. That was why I originally suggested that you rear some and find out. Then if you report your findings, we would all know.

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

8 Feb 2020

I'm not sure what you mean by lanaphagous. Do you mean monophagous?
Thanks for your suggestions.

donhe wrote:

9 Feb 2020

lana is Latin for wool, Lanaphagous = eats animal hair

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

10 Feb 2020

Ah... thanks Don
I've been checking items in my household and I've found evidence of woollen ones being eaten by moths, but so far no cotton items.

donhe wrote:

10 Feb 2020

The woollen textile damage could be caused by other common lanaphagous Tineidae like
Monopis icterogastra, Niditinea fuscella, Tinea pellionella , Tineola bisselliella and Trichophaga tapetzella. Do you see any of these flying about indoors? Have you tried hanging a sticky fly paper in the bedroom and seeing if it traps other indoor moth species?
The larvae of most Tineidae species eat other things like wine corks, Grass Trees, rotting wood, Fungi, flower buds, and should not be executed for textile damage, without a fair trial.

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

10 Feb 2020

I will continue to monitor the situation and report any new findings.

GlennCocking wrote:

10 Feb 2020

I've just received specimens from Michael and Christine (who posted the other current Edosa ochracea record) and will work out what they are.

AlisonMilton wrote:

11 Feb 2020

Michael, Not sure if these are the same moths, but I had a large infestation of carpet moths a couple of years ago. I vacuumed larvae where I could find them but couldn't get to those behind and under bookcases etc so the infestation continued. I then bought some pantry moth traps (there are also similar traps for clothes moths) and put them in strategic places . It took a couple of years but I now see very few moths as opposed to seeing dozens at a time when it started.

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

11 Feb 2020

Thanks Alison
Carpet moths sounds like a likely possibility.

GlennCocking wrote:

12 Feb 2020

Specimens from the houses for records 4249329 and 4245676 include a species from the Tinea pellionella complex, possibly T. translucens. It has a variable pattern, from a darkish grey/brown (often with a few darker spots), through plain light yellow/beige to off white. It is hard to distinguish between light yellow specimens of Tinea translucens and the consistently light gold pattern of Tineola bisselliella, the common house moth. There are differences in their head structures, but I don’t have enough fresh specimens to be certain of Tineola bisselliella (and the structural differences are unlikely to be visible in a live photo). But the photos for records 4249329 and 4245676 are plain gold andI think we should recognise them as Tineola bisselliella. The photos in the new record 4249751 might illustrate both species - although the darkness that is apparent in the first three may be an artifact of the photo and they are really the same as the last two that seem to be Tineola bisselliella - but it’s impossible to be certain. (I downloaded the photos and adjusted the colour and couldn’t be certain about any differences between the five.)
If the “owners” of these moths could find the larvae, perhaps in some carpet that is or has been damp (although they eat a wide variety of animal origin matter), then we would learn more. The larvae of Tineola bisselliella are usually found within an untidy mass of webbing, whereas those of Tinea translucens each construct a portable silk case incorporating fragments of the food as disguise.
Edosa ochracea is a plain darker gold than Tineola bisselliella, and differs from both the above species in its head structures. I haven’t read of any association with dwellings, and the biology of the genus is not known.

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

12 Feb 2020

Ok Glenn
I haven't seen any larvae in my indoor explorations but I'll keep an eye out for them.

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

18 Feb 2020

Thanks Glenn, for going to so much trouble to ID this tiny moth.

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