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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Butterflies and Moths (Lepidoptera) » Tubeworm, Bagworm, and Clothes Moths (Tineoidea) » Clothes Moths (Tineidae) » Burrowing Webworm Moths (Acrolophinae) » Tubeworm Moths (Acrolophus) » Acrolophus walsinghami - Hodges#0386.1 (Acrolophus walsinghami)

Species Acrolophus walsinghami - Hodges#0386.1

Classification · Hodges Number · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Identification · Range · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited
Moth - Acrolophus walsinghami Acrolophus sp.? - Acrolophus walsinghami Acrolophus - Acrolophus walsinghami Acrolophus species - Acrolophus walsinghami moth - Acrolophus walsinghami unknown moth 1 - Acrolophus walsinghami Florida Moth - Acrolophus walsinghami Florida Moth - Acrolophus walsinghami
Show images of: caterpillars · adults · both
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
Superfamily Tineoidea (Tubeworm, Bagworm, and Clothes Moths)
Family Tineidae (Clothes Moths)
Subfamily Acrolophinae (Burrowing Webworm Moths)
Genus Acrolophus (Tubeworm Moths)
Species walsinghami (Acrolophus walsinghami - Hodges#0386.1)
Hodges Number
0386.1
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Acrolophus walsinghami Möschler, 1890
Anaphora triatomella Walsingham, 1897
Explanation of Names
Davis (1986) formally synonymized A. walsinghami with A. triatomellus noting that the had been previously noted in the Neotropical Checklist (Davis, 1984). However, walsinghami was described seven years earlier indicating that it should have priority.
Identification
This is the most abundant Acrolophus by far in Penninsular Florida, especially in urban and suburban habitats, but it does not occur over the rest of the East. It typically has a “W-mark” on the forewings and a white discal dot, as seen nicely here:

However, the coloration is extremely variable, with the pattern sometimes being all or partly obscured:

In general though, if you’ve found an Acrolophus at a building light in Penninsular Florida, it’s probably this one.
Like many other Acrolophus, males have long palps curved back over the thorax and females have shorter palps facing forward to form a snout.


Per Dr. James E. Hayden here: "The dark "W" on the forewing is distinctive, but the exact coloration is highly variable, so I would need to see genitalia."
Range
Per Dr. James E. Hayden here: "...a Caribbean species that has become widespread in south Florida since at least 2000..."
Print References
Davis, D.R. 1986. Neotropical Tineidae, I. The types of H. B. Moschler (Lepidoptera: Tineoidea) bugguide. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington. 88(1): 86 (Acrolophus triatomellus)
Möschler,H.B. 1890. Die Lepidopteren-Fauna der Insel Portorico. Abhandlungen Herausgeben von der Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft. 16: 336
Walsingham, T.G. 1897. Revision of the West-Indian Micro-Lepidoptera, with descriptions of new species. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 1897:172 (Anaphora triatomella)
Internet References
Moth Photographers Group (MPG) (1)
The Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) (2)
Works Cited
1.North American Moth Photographers Group
2.BOLD: The Barcode of Life Data Systems
Contributed by Steve Nanz on 26 November, 2014 - 3:39am
Additional contributions by dennepj10
Last updated 11 August, 2023 - 8:46am

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