Aglossa pinguinalis

Aglossa pinguinalis Linnaeus, 1758)
Grease Moth or Large Tabby
(one synonym : Aglossa cuprina Zeller, 1872)
PYRALINAE, PYRALIDAE, PYRALOIDEA

Don Herbison-Evans
(donherbisonevans@yahoo.com)
and
Stella Crossley

(Photo: courtesy of Elaine McDonald, Nicholls Rivulet, Tasmania)

The Caterpillars of this species are a pest in commercial and domestic situations. They are dark grey with sparse hairs and black mandibles. They have been found feeding on :

grain and grain products,

dung.

They spin silken web through their foodstuff, making commercial materials unsaleable.

(Photo: courtesy of the Photography Group, Centre for Biodiversity Genomics, University of Guelph)

The adult moths have brown or grey forewings with a pattern including a number of dark marks along the costa. The hindwings are plain pale brown or grey. The wingspan is about 4 cms.

The adult moths feed on grease in a variety of situations, such as:

Butter, and

Corpses.

The eggs are oval and white.

The species occurs worldwide, including :

as well as in Australia in

Tasmania.

Further reading: