HOW TO IDENTIFY IF YOU HAVE A MOTHS PROBLEM? By the time you have noticed the moths, their larvae will have already caused a great deal of damage.
Clothes moths are one species of moths that are not attracted to light; in fact, they avoid light
They are reluctant flyers and may be seen scurrying across the surface of infested materials
Clothes moths will not eat vegetable products or food kept in the kitchen
Clothes moths don’t drink water, they get the moisture from human sweat left on clothing
HOW DO I KNOW IF I HAVE CLOTHES MOTHS?
- Clothes moths are usually found in closets, basements, attics and other dark, undisturbed areas.
- Moths flying about in the kitchen, pantry area, and other open spaces are probably not clothes moths. More likely they are grain-related moths coming from infested flour, cereal, or other stored food item.
- Clothes moths do not fly quickly so they are easily noticeable.
- They tend to live in corners and folds of fabrics.
- The first indication of a clothes moth infestation may be little holes in clothing or draperies.
- Another indication of a clothes moth infestation is hardly detectable, mostly white threads on the fabric that look like very fine cobwebs.
- You may also find small, maggot-looking larvae in clothes drawers or silken cases or tubes where moth larvae live.
Common Clothes Moth
Appearance
- Adult — 6 – 8 mm long.
- Straw coloured wings with no markings.
- Trailing edge of the wings is strongly fringed.
- Larvae — up to 10 mm long. Creamy white with a brown head.
Lifecycle
- Egg to adult is usually about 6 weeks. May reach 10 to 18 months if the food is poor or temperatures are cold.
Habits
- Adult does not feed. Runs rather than flies, avoids the light.
MOTH SPECIES - BELOW
Casemaking clothes moths (Tinea pellionella)
- The casemaking clothes moth is less common and also of far less economic importance than the webbing clothes moth.
- Casemaking clothes moth larvae are not exposed; they are inside open-ended a “silken case” about 3/8” in length which they carry about
- The case takes on the color of the fabric the larva has eaten.
- Pupal stage often suspends vertically from ceilings and closet shelves.
- The wing span of Adult casemaking moths are smaller than webbing clothes moths at 3/8”- ½” in length.
- Case making clothes moths are more brownish in hue with 3 faint dark spots on feathered wings
- Hairs on the head are lighter colored than those of the webbing clothes moth
Give us a call to sort your moth problems, use our contacts page.
Brown House Moth
The Brown House Moth (Hofmannophila pseudospretella) is a species of the concealer moth family. It is often considered a pest due to the feeding activity of its caterpillars.
At rest the Adult Brown House Moth is typically 8-14mm and its wingspan is 15–26 mm. Brown House Moth colouring is normally bronze-brown with dark brown and sometimes black flecks on the forewings. The adults fly all year round. The Brown House Moth larvae are about 6mm long, being off-white in colour and with a brown head. The female adult brown house moth can lay up to 600 eggs and the incubation period, dependent on conditions, can vary from 8 to 110 days. The larval stage can extend from 70 to about 150 days and the brown house moth larvae need a reasonably high degree of humidity – if humidity is consistently below 80% they cannot complete their development.
The caterpillars feed on organic detritus that accumulates indoors, e.g. behind skirting boards and other similar places. Typically foodstuffs are cereals (including oatmeal, pearl barley and rice) and other seeds, flour, potatoes, furs and biscuits. The Brown House Moth will also feed off natural clothing and carpet fabrics, in particular wool upholstery, carpets and clothing. The brown house moth is more destructive than the common clothes moth. Its faeces are oblong and larger than those of the common clothes moth.
Give us a call to sort your moth problems, use our contacts page.
White Shoulder House Moth
The White Shouldered House Moth is a common species that belongs to the same sub-species as the brown house moth. The white shouldered house moth is now found worldwide due to its close association with human environments which creates plentiful food sources.
Unlike the webbing clothes moth and carpet moth, the white shouldered house moth is attracted to light and due to its constant all-year round breeding cycle can be found in houses, outbuildings and factory environments where dried food sources such as grain maybe found. However, it is omnivorous, eating foodstuffs such as grain, bran, flour and other cereals, but also feeding on wool and other animal based fabrics. Bird nests are a particularly ideal environment and, if any are located nearby, a risk for them entering the house.
Consequently, the white shouldered house moth as a pest is a risk to stored food in the same way as the pantry moth species, as well as to clothing and carpets, particularly when humidity levels are high.
The larvae are similar to other house moths, being a creamy white small caterpillar, and in the same way as the case-bearing clothes moth and carpet moth, they spin small cases in which they ‘hide’. The adult female white shouldered house moth, when mated, lays up to 200 eggs near to a suitable food source for the larvae that hatch within 1 to 2 weeks and start feeding immediately, feeding at night and hiding in the day. The adults live a shorter life than other similar moths, typically less than 3 weeks.
Give us a call to sort your moth problems, use our contacts page.
Indian Meal Moth ( Pantry Moth )
The Indian Meal Moth or Pantry Moth (Plodia interpunctella) is considered to be the most troublesome pest infesting stored products. They attack all cereal products, whole grains, dried fruits, pet foods, bird seed, dried milk and nuts. Damage is caused by the larvae spinning silken threads as they feed and crawl, thus webbing the particles of food together. Small moths are often noticed flying in a zigzag fashion around kitchens and other indoor areas.
Identification
Pantry moths (5/8 inch wingspan) are pale gray in color and are easily distinguished from other grain infesting moths by the reddish brown or coppery luster of their outer forewing. Fully grown larvae (1/2 inch) have brown heads and are dirty white in color, sometimes tinged with green, yellow or pink. They are extremely active.