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Tineidae
family of insects / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tineidae (or clothes moth) is a family of moths. They are known as fungus moths or tineid moths.
Tineidae | |
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Adult European Grain Moth (Nemapogon granella: Nemapogoninae) from Graz (Austria) | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | |
Phylum: | |
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Suborder: | Glossata |
Infraorder: | Heteroneura |
Division: | |
Superfamily: | Tineoidea |
Family: | Tineidae Latreille, 1810 |
Type genus | |
Tinea Linnaeus, 1758 | |
Subfamilies | |
Dryadaulinae |
There are more than 3,000 species in over 300 genera. Most of the tineid moths are small or medium-sized. They have wings. They are common in the Palaearctic. Others found elsewhere were introduced
Tineids eat living plants, fungi, lichens, and detritus. The best-known members of the family are the clothes moths. They eat stored fabrics. The most widespread species are the common clothes moth (Tineola bisselliella), the case-bearing clothes moth (Tinea pellionella) and the carpet moth (Trichophaga tapetzella). The brown-dotted clothes moths (Niditinea fuscella) feeds on feathers in a bird's nest. The genus Ceratophaga, feeds on dead animals such as mammals and the shells of dead tortoises.