Lat: Ephestia elutella – Also called cocoa moth or tobacco moth.
It belongs to the group of moths called chocolate moths. The warehouse moth is similar to the Mediterranean flour moth. The warehouse moth is common in warehouses and households throughout the temperate part of the globe. It infests, among other foods, grain, seed, feed, dried fruit, almonds, nuts, cocoa beans and chocolate products. Warehouse moths can also do damage to tobacco stocks.
Females lay about 300 eggs, the majority during the first four days of their lives as adult moths. The adult moths do not live very long. 2-3 weeks at room temperature and at 25 ° C it lives approximately 9 days.
However, the larvae have a slow development. At room temperature, they develop in 80 to 206 days, depending on their diet. The full-grown larvae measure 12 mm. They become restless and leave their food to wander around for up to three days before they find a place to pupate. They seek upwards and they usually end up in a suitable place at the top of a wall or on a ceiling.
In unheated warehouses, the larvae will go into hibernation in the autumn, this is the so-called diapause, and then they will not pupate until the following year. The pupal stage lasts 2-3 weeks.
"Pests in House and Home"
"Bed Bugs - Bites, Stings and Itches"
"Food Pests"
"Husets dyreliv" (Insects Around the House - Only danish)
"Skadedyr i træ" (Timber Pests - Only danish)
"Stuefluen" (Common Housefly - Only danish)