Mediterranean flour moth
Ephestia kuehniella Zeller

Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pyralidae
Acronym: EKU

Ecology

The Mediterranean flour moth is found worldwide. It is a scavenger. It is an important pest of stored products including milled and processed products. The moth is found in mills, processing facilities, warehouses and households. It is found in temperate regions and it can survive in unheated facilities. It feeds on grain, cereal products, and flour. During the day, adult moths can be seen resting on walls and other surfaces. The adults fly mostly at dusk and dawn. The Mediterranean flour moth looks most like the almond moth, Cadra cautella.

Damage

The Mediterranean flour moth infests stored products. Damage is not distinct and is caused by larval feeding. When feeding on whole grains, the larva prefers to feed on the germ and bran. The larva burrows into food and creates in which it will be concealed while it feeds. It produces silk webbing when it feeds and can bind the surface of a grain bulk together. It can burrow through packing. A sign of infestation in the product is contamination with silk webbing, frass, cast skins, pupal cases and adult remains.

Life history

The adult Mediterranean flour moth has a wing span of 16 - 25 mm. The body length is 9 - 12 mm. The labial palps are upturned. The forewings are uniformly grey with some dark transverse markings and a few dark spots. The hind wing is light grey to beige and has a fringe of hairs on the wing margin. Both the forewings and hind wings are rounded at the apex. The adult does not feed on the commodity. The adult can fly. It is short lived; longevity is 7 – 21 days.

Breeding conditions are temperatures between 12°C - 30°C, and humidity greater than 0%. The flour moth breeds at lower temperatures. The female lays 150 - 200 eggs loosely and randomly on a food source.

The larva is white to pink in colour with a distinctly brown head. It can grow to 12 mm in length. It is active. Each body segment has two black spots, which run in parallel lines down the back. Ideal conditions for development are temperatures between 24°C - 27°C and relative humidity of 75%. The development time required for a larva to reach maturity is between 30 – 420 days. When the larva is mature it will actively leave the feed source and search for a site in which to pupate. The larva pupates in a silk cocoon. The larva can enter diapause if the conditions are unfavorable for development. Several generations a year can be produced.

Control

Controlling insect infestations

Images

Adult: Mediterranean flour moth

Adult: Mediterranean flour moth – Ephestia kuehniella