Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
BugGuide currently follows the moth classification and nomenclature used at
All-Leps.
Numbers
181 species in 26 genera in 3 subfamilies in North America listed at
All-Leps
at least 1,628 species in 106 genera worldwide
Identification
Small to minute moths. Labial palps long, curving upward, often sickle-shaped. Forewing and hindwing lancelike. Forewing shape varies from narrow to extremely narrow; hindwing usually extremely narrow. Wings often brightly marked.
Range
much of North America and the world
Season
adult flight season ranges from March to November (varies according to species)
Food
diverse feeding habits: includes bark and leaf miners, seed borers, gall makers, seed & flower bud feeders, and scavengers on dead plant material; one genus is parasitic on armored scale insects
Internet References
technical description plus pinned adult image of undeterminied cosmopterigid and other info (Gerald Fauske, Moths of North Dakota)
pinned and live adult and larva images of several Australian species (Cosmopterigidae of Australia, U. of Sydney)
common name reference [Cosmet Moths] (Tree of Life, tolweb.org)
