Stigmella aurella

Stigmella aurella is a moth of the family Nepticulidae found in Africa, Asia and Europe. It was first described by the Danish zoologist, Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775. The larvae are leaf miners.

Stigmella aurella
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Nepticulidae
Genus:	Stigmella
Species:	S. aurella
Binomial name
Stigmella aurella (Fabricius, 1775)[1]
Synonyms
List Tinea aurella Fabricius, 1775 Nepticula albicomella Heinemann & Wocke, 1876 Nepticula fragariella Heinemann, 1862 Nepticula gei Wocke, 1871 Nepticula nitens Fologne, 1862 Stigmella fragariella (Heinemann, 1862) Vári, 1944 Nepticula gei var. geirubi Skala, 1940 Nepticula fruticosella Müller-Rutz, 1914 Nepticula gei f. semicolorella Eppelsheim, 1891

Description

The wingspan is 6–7 millimetres (0.24–0.28 in). The head is ferruginous to orange. Antennal eyecaps ochreous-whitish. Forewings shining copper gold ; a shining pale golden fascia beyond middle, preceded by a purplish or dark purple-fuscous fascia, apical area beyond this dark purple to fuscous. Hindwings rather dark grey.^[2] Adults are on wing in May and later in the summer.^[3][4][5]

Ovum

Eggs are laid on either side of a leaf.^[6]

Larva

Larvae are amber yellow with a greenish-brown gut and a yellow-brown head. The mine is a long sinuous gallery which gradually widens and the frass is dispersed.^[7] Larvae feed on common agrimony (Agrimonia eupatoria), Agrimonia procera, bastard-agrimony (Aremonia agrimonoides), musk strawberry (Fragaria moschata), wild strawberry (Fragaria vesca), creamy strawberry (Fragaria viridis), water avens (Geum rivale), wood avens (Geum urbanum), European dewberry (Rubus caesius), Rubus dumetorum, European blackberry (Rubus fruticosus), raspberry (Rubus idaeus), blackberry (Rubus plicatus), holy bramble (Rubus sanguineus), stone bramble (Rubus saxatilis) and elmleaf blackberry (Rubus ulmifolius).^[8]

Pupa

The larva pupates in a cocoon which is spun in detritus. It varies in colour from pale green to pale ochreous.^[6][7]

Gallery

• 
  Mine on Geum species
• 
  Mine on Fragaria species
• 
  mine on bramble
• 
  Mine, on bramble, showing the frass,
• 
  Vacated cocoon showing the exuvia
• 
• 

Distribution

It is found in Europe from Ireland to Ukraine, the Near East, and the eastern part of the Palearctic realm.

Taxonomy

The genus Stigmella was erected by the German priest, botanist and entomologist, Franz von Paula Schrank in 1802. Stigma refers to the small spot or a brand, possibly from the small size of the moths, or more likely from the conspicuous (sometimes metallic) fascia on the forewing of many of the species in the genus. The word stigma in English can sometimes signify a mark of disgrace, although not in this case, as Schrank called the moths Edelmotte, i.e. noble moths. Initially, Stigmella had family rather than generic status. The specific name aurella, comes from aurum referring to gold; from the golden, metallic fascia on the forewing.^[9]