Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919
Honora mellinella
This record describes Honora mellinella (species). Recorded family: Pyralidae. Recorded order: Lepidoptera.
Identification and Appearance
Adult : FW blackish-fuscous. Head and thorax faded ocherous. Interior line white, not continued to costa. Yellow shade-spot below, near inner margin. Two separate, very small, dark, distal dots. Exterior line near the margin, even, narrow, and indistinct white. HW very pale fuscous, silky, with concolorous fringes.
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Arthropoda
- Class
- Insecta
- Order
- Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
- Superfamily
- Pyraloidea
- Family
- Pyralidae (Pyralid Moths)
- Subfamily
- Phycitinae
- Tribe
- Phycitini
- Genus
- Honora
Imported taxonomy record. Source availability varies; see the source references and editorial policy below.
Habitat and Range
Geographic Range
Southeastern states; in the west from Texas to California; Washington (Heinrich, 1956). Also Oklahoma.
Diet and Behavior
Diet: Known larval hosts are Palafoxia (Asteraceae) (Heinrich, 1956). Powell & Opler specify flower heads of desert palafox ( P. arida ) in the Mojave desert.
About Butterflies and Moths: the wider group
Order-level background for Lepidoptera, the group containing Honora mellinella. Species-specific details appear above.
Group overview
Lepidoptera includes approximately 180,000 described species of butterflies and moths. Moths outnumber butterflies roughly 10:1. The monarch butterfly's eastern population has declined by more than 80% since the mid-1990s, and the western population by over 95% since the 1980s. The IUCN lists the migratory monarch as Vulnerable.
Ecological role of the group
Butterflies and moths are essential indicators of ecosystem health. As caterpillars, they are a primary food source for birds - a single nest of blue tit chicks requires ~10,000 caterpillars. Adult moths pollinate many night-blooming plants.
Economic and practical significance of the group
Lepidoptera are critical pollinators. In Europe, grassland butterfly species have declined by almost 50% since the early 1990s. In the UK, three-quarters of butterflies are in decline. In the U.S., five butterfly species have gone extinct since 1950, with 29 listed as endangered.
Recorded sources for this group: IUCN Red List, Xerces Society, USFWS, PNAS, WWF. Imported estimates may describe particular regions or reporting periods.
Photos of Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919 (5)
Photo credits: Contributed by Charley Eiseman; Additional contributions by Maury Heiman , Robert Lord Zimlich , Randy Hardy , Blocky
Frequently Asked Questions About Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919
What is Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919?
Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919 (Honora mellinella) is a species in the family Pyralidae, within the order Lepidoptera.
How big is Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919?
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Forewing | Forewing length 7-11 mm (Powell & Opler, 2009). |
| Wingspan | Wingspan 16-24 mm (Heinrich, 1956). |
How do you identify Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919?
Adult : FW blackish-fuscous. Head and thorax faded ocherous. Interior line white, not continued to costa. Yellow shade-spot below, near inner margin. Two separate, very small, dark, distal dots. Exterior line near the margin, even, narrow, and indistinct white. HW very pale fuscous, silky, with concolorous fringes.
Where is Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919 found?
Range: Southeastern states; in the west from Texas to California; Washington (Heinrich, 1956). Also Oklahoma.
What does Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919 eat?
The diet of the Honora mellinella - Hodges#5919 includes Known larval hosts are Palafoxia (Asteraceae) (Heinrich, 1956). Powell & Opler specify flower heads of desert palafox ( P. arida ) in the Mojave desert..