Crambidae comprises the grass moth family of lepidopterans. They are variable in appearance, with the nominal subfamily Crambinae taking up closely folded postures on grass stems where they are inconspicuous, while other subfamilies include brightly coloured and patterned insects that rest in wing-spread attitudes.
The Pyralidae, commonly called pyralid moths, snout moths or grass moths, are a family of Lepidoptera in the ditrysian superfamily Pyraloidea. In many classifications, the grass moths (Crambidae) are included in the Pyralidae as a subfamily, making the combined group one of the largest families in the Lepidoptera. The latest review by Eugene G. Munroe and Maria Alma Solis retain the Crambidae as a full family of Pyraloidea.
The Pyraloidea are a moth superfamily containing about 16,000 described species worldwide, and probably at least as many more remain to be described. They are generally fairly small moths, and as such, they have been traditionally associated with the paraphyletic Microlepidoptera.
The squash vine borer is a diurnal species of sesiid moth. The moth is often mistaken for a bee or wasp because of its movements, and the bright orange hind leg scales. The females typically lay their eggs at the base of leaf stalks, and the caterpillars develop and feed inside the stalk, eventually killing the leaf. They soon migrate to the main stem, and with enough feeding damage to the stem, the entire plant may die. For this reason, it is considered a pest that attacks cultivated varieties of squash, zucchini, pumpkin, and acorn squash. The squash vine borer is native to North America, with some reports as far south as Brazil and Argentina. It lives in most temperate North American states, except the Pacific coast. Southern states have two broods a year.
The European corn borer, also known as the European corn worm or European high-flyer, is a moth of the family Crambidae. It is a pest of grain, particularly maize. The insect is native to Europe, originally infesting varieties of millet, including broom corn. The European corn borer was first reported in North America in 1917 in Massachusetts, but was probably introduced from Europe several years earlier. Since its initial discovery in the Americas, the insect has spread into Canada and westwards across the United States to the Rocky Mountains.
Papaipema is a genus of moths of the family Noctuidae. The genus was erected by John B. Smith in 1899.
A pheromone trap is a type of insect trap that uses pheromones to lure insects. Sex pheromones and aggregating pheromones are the most common types used. A pheromone-impregnated lure is encased in a conventional trap such as a bottle trap, Delta trap, water-pan trap, or funnel trap. Pheromone traps are used both to count insect populations by sampling, and to trap pests such as clothes moths to destroy them.
Nanaguna breviuscula, the pigeonpea pod borer, is a moth species of the family Nolidae. It is found from Sri Lanka and India east to Samoa. In Australia it is found in the Kimberleys in Western Australia, the northern part of the Northern Territory and from the Torres Strait Islands and Queensland to Sydney in New South Wales.
Busseola fusca is a species of moth that is also known as the maize stalk borer. It is known from Ethiopia.
Eldana is a genus of moths of the family Pyralidae containing only one species, the African sugar-cane borer, which is commonly found in Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and South Africa. Adults have pale brown forewings with two small spots in the centre and light brown hindwings, and they have a wingspan of 35mm. This species is particularly relevant to humans because the larvae are a pest of the Saccharum species as well as several grain crops such as sorghum and maize. Other recorded host plants are cassava, rice and Cyperus species. When attacking these crops, E. saccharina bores into the stems of their host plant, causing severe damage to the crop. This behavior is the origin of the E. saccharrina's common name, the African sugar-cane borer. The African sugar-cane borer is a resilient pest, as it can survive crop burnings. Other methods such as intercropping and parasitic wasps have been employed to prevent further damage to crops.
Sesamia grisescens, the pink sugarcane borer, pink stalk borer, shoot borer, sugarcane borer or ramu shoot borer, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Warren in 1911. It is found in Papua New Guinea, Seram, the Moluccas and New Britain.
Chilo plejadellus, the rice stalk borer moth, is a moth in the family Crambidae described by Johann Leopold Theodor Friedrich Zincken in 1821. It is found in North America, including Illinois, Ontario, Quebec, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Texas and Arkansas.
Diatraea crambidoides, the southern cornstalk borer moth, is a species of moth of the family Crambidae described by Augustus Radcliffe Grote in 1880. It is found in North America, from Alabama and northern Florida to Ohio and Maryland. Its wingspan is 15–40 mm, and adults are straw colored to dull white. The forewings are slightly darker than the hindwings. There are two generations per year.
Ostrinia scapulalis, the adzuki bean borer or adzuki bean worm, is a species of moth in the family Crambidae. It was described by Francis Walker in 1859. It is one of 20 moths in the genus Ostrinia and is of Eurasian origin. The larvae have a gray mid-dorsal line and can be light pink or beige. The adult adzuki bean borer has a yellowish-brown forewing with jagged lines and variable darker shading, with a wingspan that ranges from 20 to 32 mm. The moths of this species are nocturnal and tend to be attracted to light.
Ostrinia furnacalis is a species of moth in the family Crambidae, the grass moths. It was described by Achille Guenée in 1854 and is known by the common name Asian corn borer since this species is found in Asia and feeds mainly on corn crop. The moth is found from China to Australia, including in Java, Sulawesi, the Philippines, Borneo, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Micronesia. The Asian corn borer is part of the species complex, Ostrinia, in which members are difficult to distinguish based on appearance. Other Ostrinia such as O. orientalis, O. scapulalis, O. zealis, and O. zaguliaevi can occur with O. furnacalis, and the taxa can be hard to tell apart.
Sesamia cretica, the corn stem borer, greater sugarcane borer, sorghum stem borer, stem corn borer, durra stem borer, large corn borer, pink sugarcane borer, sugarcane pink borer, sorghum borer, pink corn borer, maize borer or purple stem borer, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It was described by Julius Lederer in 1857. It is found in most of the countries and islands of the Mediterranean basin. The range extends through the Middle East and Arabia to Pakistan, northern India and northern Africa. In the south, the range extends to northern Kenya and northern Cameroon.
Chilo infuscatellus, the yellow top borer or sugarcane shoot borer, is a moth in the family Crambidae. It was described by the Dutch entomologist Samuel Constantinus Snellen van Vollenhoven in 1890. It is found in India, Myanmar, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines and on Java and Timor.
Papaipema circumlucens, the hops-stalk borer moth, is a species of moth native to North America, where it has been recorded from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, Ohio, Saskatchewan and Wisconsin. The species was described by Smith in 1899. It is listed as a species of special concern and is believed to be extirpated from the US state of Connecticut.
Papaipema eryngii, the rattlesnake-master borer, is a species of cutworm or dart moth in the family Noctuidae. It is found in North America. It bores into the rattlesnake master, Eryngium yuccifolium, at the stalk, inverts and develops, killing the plant in the process. In order to mature, the moth needs a mature rattlesnake master or multiple young stalks.
