Ephysteris promptella | |
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Species: | E. promptella
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Ephysteris promptella (Staudinger, 1859)[1]
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Ephysteris promptella, the ratoon shootborer, is a moth of the family Gelechiidae. It is a pantropical species, found in the warmer parts of the Old World tropics to Australia. It is widely distributed in southern Europe (ranging to Slovakia in the north).[2]
The wingspan is 8–10 mm.[3] Adults are greyish brown. Males are smaller and have black dots, while females have white flecks.[4]
The larvae feed on Andropogon, Oryza, Panicum, Saccharum officinarum, Sorghum, Stipa, Triticum and Zea mays. They bore the shoots of their host plant.[5] Full-grown larvae reach a length of about 5 mm.[6] Pupation takes place in a cocoon covered in frass which is made in debris on the soil surface.