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Species Rumatha polingella - Hodges#5980

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Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)

Superfamily Pyraloidea (Pyralid and Crambid Snout Moths)

Family Pyralidae (Pyralid Moths)

Subfamily Phycitinae

Tribe Phycitini

No Taxon (Cactus-Feeding Group)

Genus Rumatha

Species polingella (Rumatha polingella - Hodges#5980)

Hodges Number

5980

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Rumatha polingella (Dyar, 1906)

Zophodia polingella Dyar, 1906 (1)

Explanation of Names

Named in honor of ornithologist and entomologist Otho C. Poling (1879-1929) of Quincy, Illinois. Poling collected throughout the mountains and deserts of the American southwest, including California, southern Arizona, New Mexico, west Texas and Utah in two distinct periods (1900-1906 and 1922-1929). Many of his specimens were described by William Barnes and he had fourteen species of moths named for him. (2)

Numbers

There are four named Rumatha species in America north of Mexico. (3)

Size

Dyar (1906) listed the wingspan as 26-32 mm. (1)

MONA Fascicle 15.4 lists wing length of 11.0-16.5 mm

Identification

Range

California to western Texas.

Season

Adults are most common from June to August.

Food

The larval host plant is Cylindropuntia sp.

See Also

Rumatha glaucatella - much smaller (7.0-9.0 wing length) and paler according to MONA Fascicle 15.4

Print References

Dyar, H.G. 1906. Descriptions of new American moths. Journal of the New York Entomological Society, 14: 31. (1)

Neunzig, H.H., 1997. The Moths of America North of Mexico, Fascicle 15.4, 75, pl. 3.31-32. (4)

Internet References

Moth Photographers Group (5)

Works Cited

1.	Descriptions of new American moths Harrison G Dyar. 1906. Journal of The New York Entomological Society, 14: 30-31 .

2.	Moths of Western North America Powell and Opler. 2009. UC Press.

3.	Check list of the Lepidoptera of America north of Mexico. Hodges, et al. (editors). 1983. E. W. Classey, London. 284 pp.

4.	The Moths of North America north of Mexico. Fascicle 15.4. Pyraloidea, Pyralidae, Phycitinae (part) H. H. Neunzig. 1997. The Wedge Entomological Research Foundation.

5.	North American Moth Photographers Group

Contributed by Maury J. Heiman on 25 June, 2013 - 8:56pm
Additional contributions by Randy Hardy, Steve Morris
Last updated 27 March, 2022 - 11:46am

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