Moth larvae in the photo and methods of dealing with them

Moth larvae are the very pests that spoil clothes, “shear” furs and leave ugly bald spots on almost any natural textile. Moth butterflies cannot spoil clothes: they do not have a developed mouth apparatus at all, and they do not eat at all throughout their adult life. However, it is butterflies that lay eggs, from which offspring are quickly hatched. And each moth larva is, one might say, a few more holes in woolen clothes or a bald spot on fur.

It is interesting

It is a myth that female moths do not have wings. They are all winged, although their organs for flight are slightly smaller than those of males. Another thing is that the females practically do not use the wings, and the butterflies flying around the room, indeed, are exclusively males.

The larva of a domestic moth can spoil not only clothes. There are hundreds of species of moths capable of living and reproducing in a human dwelling, and each of them has its own food specialization. Moth larvae can eat fur and fabrics, flour, cereals, dried fruits, bread, nuts, pet food - almost any organic product.

But at the same time, the moth larvae in the photographs and live look all the same, and only the experienced eye of a professional entomologist can tell the difference between moth caterpillars of different species.

 

Appearance and characteristics of moth larvae

Live and in the photo, moth larvae are small white or with a slight yellow tint of caterpillars. Whatever species the moth belongs to, its larvae have powerful gnawing jaws and a well-defined brown head. The photo below shows a larva of a clothes moth:

In most moth species, the larvae look like small worms, but this comparison is not entirely correct - real worms do not have limbs, and the moth caterpillar, like any other insect, has six pairs of tiny legs.

It is interesting

There are more individual muscles in the body of a moth caterpillar than in a human body. This allows the pest to actively move and feed efficiently.

The larva of the food moth looks almost the same as the larva of the clothes moth. However, the caterpillar of a clothes pest will never feed on flour or cereals, and vice versa: food moth, for example, is called several species of moth butterflies, whose caterpillars are not able to feed on textiles. The photo below shows what the larvae of the barn food moth look like - a well-known food pest:

For clothes, furniture, carpet and fur coat moths, it is characteristic that their larvae make a cover for themselves - a small cocoon of their own silk-like substance and the remains of damaged tissues, which the caterpillar puts on itself and with which it moves over short distances. And in the furniture moth, the larva even makes a whole house for itself in the form of a tunnel of silk, food debris and excrement:

Similar cocoons are created by food moth larvae. In the photo - flour spoiled by fire. Lumps are visible, which are cocoons covered with flour:

On a note

From the larva of the kozheed, the larva of the carpet or furniture moth differs very well. Any skin beetle larva is covered with long hairs and usually has a dark skin color. Next, the photo shows the larva of the kozheed, and below is the larva of the carpet moth. In addition, the skin beetle larvae are well distinguished by their “temperament”: they are very mobile and crawl quickly.

 

Growth and lifestyle of larvae

The terms of development of larvae of different species are different and depend not only on the biology of the species, but also on the conditions of their habitat. The optimum temperature for the development of clothes and furniture moth larvae is 23-25°C. Under these conditions, the development of a moth larva in a fur coat lasts about 90 days, and the total cycle from egg to egg lasts up to six months.

It is interesting

At a temperature of about 30 ° C, the larva of the clothes moth, with normal nutrition, has time to develop in two months, and at a temperature of 13 ° C, it will take about 190 days.

At temperatures below 13°C and above 30°C, clothes moth eggs do not develop, and the larvae die. Approximately in the same temperature intervals, a food moth larva can develop, but its growth is much faster due to the greater nutritional value of food. At a sufficiently high temperature, the barn moth larva pupates within a month after leaving the egg. During its development, the moth caterpillar experiences 4 molts. Therefore, it is customary for entomologists to talk about five instars of the larva. In the photo below - a moth caterpillar of the last age:

Moth larvae are inactive and rarely move long distances.Females lay their eggs either on the food for their offspring, or in close proximity to it, and after hatching, the only thing left for the larvae to do is eat food and grow. At the same time, the youngest larvae can crawl away to a sufficiently large distance from the place of hatching.

It is interesting

Fur moth larvae are typical pests. Many of them, moving along the fur, simply gnaw the hairs, but do not eat them, and as a result leave noticeable tracks on fur clothes.

The photo below shows a larva with a case and an adult clothes moth butterfly on a piece of cloth.

Larvae of almost all moth species try to avoid illuminated surfaces. Only in some moths the caterpillars get out of their feeding places to pupate in the open. The moth larvae on the ceiling are precisely the moth caterpillars. In the photo below - moth larvae in croup:

 

Feeding moth caterpillars

The larvae of different types of moths can eat a huge range of foods. In nature, these insects feed on the hair of mammals and bird feathers in their nests, can develop on the skins of dead animals, and infect crops, fruits, nuts, berries and vegetables.

However, human dwellings are preferable for these insects due to the constant microclimate and the constant availability of food. That is why domestic moth larvae are found on food in much larger quantities than in nature. Pests are also such types of moths that do not harm things or furniture. For example, bee moth larvae eat wax combs, honey and bee bread. And the larvae of moths that parasitize in the dwellings of ants can eat the ant larvae themselves.

 

At the same time, most of the butterflies of this group do not differ in narrow specialization.The larvae of each species of moth can eat almost any food, and the same clothes moth can easily switch from cotton to wool and vice versa. In the photo - holes in the sweater, which were left by the larvae of the domestic moth:

Moreover, there are cases when moth larvae spoiled even semi-synthetic garments.

 

Moth larvae as the main pests of clothing

Clothes, furniture upholstery, carpets are quite convenient food for moth larvae. If the materials are made of natural fabric, whether woolen or cotton, the stomach of any larva will digest it. In addition, the oldest things are preferable for caterpillars, since the fabric and pile on them are more easily gnawed by the jaws of the caterpillar. Each caterpillar is able to eat quite a bit of tissue. For example, minor damage to carpets may not be visible externally. But due to a sufficiently large number of larvae in each brood, they almost simultaneously leave several lesions that are already clearly visible.

 

And the garments themselves, on which a characteristic hole appeared, are no longer considered wearable. The moth spreads between houses and apartments, usually by the person himself. These butterflies are not able to fly long distances, and the owner of the apartment usually brings larvae to the house on purchased clothes, and already these larvae give rise to a new micropopulation. This is especially true for second-hand clothes and old carpets from relatives on which carpet moth larvae travel. Food moth larvae, respectively, "travel" along with food.

 

Fighting moth larvae in the house

Fighting moth larvae is quite difficult, although there is nothing particularly tricky about it. The larvae of clothes and furniture moths can be easily removed by treating clothes, furniture and carpets with special insecticidal aerosols. After that, things are washed, and the furniture is thoroughly wiped with a damp cloth.

 

Pest larvae usually weakly adhere to clothes, and therefore, when shaking it out, they mostly fall on the floor. They will die when things are heated in the sun at temperatures above 35 ° C. In the optimal case, moth larvae should be removed by operations in the following sequence:

1. Shaking out thoroughly all the clothes.
2. Warming up clothes in the sun or washing them in a washing machine at a temperature of more than 50 ° C - it is most effective to kill moth larvae with temperature
3. Having treated clothes and cabinets with aerosol insecticides (Antimol, Armol, Raptor from moths, etc.)
4. Only after the complete destruction of moths, use repellents - moth sections, lavender, essential oils, fumigators.

Fighting food moths is more difficult. It is absolutely impossible to destroy food moth larvae with insecticides (the poison will get into the products), you can only:

1. Throw away all products that contain larvae.
2. Destroy mechanically (slipper or fly swatter) flying butterflies.
3. Treat cabinets and bedside tables with aerosol insecticides.
4. Buy in the future products in such quantities that are eaten in a week.

An effective way to prevent moths from entering an apartment is to wash new things and carefully check the food you buy. They have not yet learned how to deal with moth larvae differently because of their versatility and ability to live even on extremely meager rations.However, these methods will already be enough to protect your home from harmful butterflies and their caterpillars. It is important to remember that the moth is not only a pest. Even its caterpillars, a person has learned to use for his own good. For example, burdock moth larva is an excellent bait for winter fishing, wax moth caterpillar is an almost ideal live food for exotic frogs kept in terrariums, and wax moth larvae tincture is known as a remedy for tuberculosis and stroke.

And in general, in nature, moths are a necessary participant in many biocenoses, and therefore it is impossible to consider moths as totally harmful, and it should be destroyed only if it poses a danger to the sanitary condition of the dwelling.

 

An interesting video: the transformation of a moth larva into a butterfly (accelerated shooting)

 

And this is how, in fact, the larvae of the clothes moth look in their cases