Stats

Lifespan

Annual

Size

Small

Diet

Herbivore

Activity

Nocturnal

Social

Solitary

Biome

Temperate grassland

Range

North America

Movement

Flight

Breeding

Egg-laying

Defense

Camouflage

Status

Uncommon

About

This small moth lives among the grasses across much of North America. Its larvae construct silk-lined tunnels underground to hide from predators while feeding.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   egg

   A tiny ribbed egg laid on the underside of a host-plant leaf, hatching within days.
2. 2.
   caterpillar

   A voracious caterpillar feeds and molts through several instars, growing rapidly.
3. 3.
   cocoon

   A silk cocoon spun in leaf litter or soil while the body remodels into a winged adult.
4. 4.
   moth

   A winged adult with feathery antennae and scaled wings, most active after dark.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Lepidoptera

Family

Crambidae

Genus

Chrysoteuchia

Species

Chrysoteuchia topiarius