Classification

Pyraloidea: Pyralidae: Phycitinae: Plodia interpunctella (Hübner)

Common name

Indian meal moth, Indianmeal moth, mealworm

Synonyms

Ephestia glycinivora, Tinea zeae, Unadilla latercula

Larval diagnosis (Detailed)

The larvalarva:
the stages between the egg and pupa of those insects having complete metamorphosis
of P. interpunctella has been illustrated many times, some examples are Hinton (1943)Hinton (1943):
Hinton, H. E. 1943. The larvae of the Lepidoptera associated with stored products. Bulletin of Entomological Research 34: 163-212., Ensminger (1958)Ensminger (1958):
Ensminger, L. G. 1958. Identification of stored product insects by the micromorphology of the exoskeleton. VIII. Moth larvae. Journal of the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists 41: 704-738., Peterson (1962)Peterson (1962):
Peterson, A. 1962. Larvae of insects: an introduction to Nearctic species. Part I: Lepidoptera and plant infesting Hymenoptera. Columbus, Ohio. 315 pp., Aitkin (1963), Carter (1984)Carter (1984):
Carter, D. J. 1984. Pest Lepidoptera of Europe with special reference to the British Isles. Dr. W. Junk Publishers. Series Entomologica vol. 31. 431 pp., Weisman (1986, 1987), Neunzig (1987, 1990), Solis (1999, 2011), and Schnitzler et al. (2012)Schnitzler et al. (2012):
Schnitzler, F. R., J. W. Haw, L. Kumarasinghe and S. George. 2012. Identification Guide to Lepidoptera Larvae Intercepted on Trade Pathways. Bulletin of the Entomological Society of New Zealand 15. 105 pp.. Keys to selected larval structures (mandible, antenna, etc.) of stored product pests, including P. interpunctella, are given by Gentry et al. (1991)Gentry et al. (1991):
Gentry, J. W., K. L. Harris and J. W. Gentry, Jr. 1991. Order Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies). In Microanalytical Entomology for Food Sanitation Control. Association of Official Analytical Chemists. Melbourne, Florida. Volume 1: 255-299.. Passoa (1985)Passoa (1985):
Passoa, S. 1985. Taxonomy of the larvae and pupae of economically important Pyralidae in Honduras. Master's Thesis. University of Florida. Gainesville. 486 pp. and Gomez de Aizpurua (2003)Gomez de Aizpurua (2003):
Gomez de Aizpurua, C. 2003. Orugas y mariposas de Europa. Tomo I. Ministerio de Medio Ambiente. Parques Nacionales. 352 pp. illustrated the larvalarva:
the stages between the egg and pupa of those insects having complete metamorphosis
in color.

Typically, P. interpunctella is recognized by being the only stored product phycitine pest without pigmented pinaculapinaculum:
a small, flat, or slightly elevated chitinized area bearing a seta or setae
(Hinton 1943Hinton 1943:
Hinton, H. E. 1943. The larvae of the Lepidoptera associated with stored products. Bulletin of Entomological Research 34: 163-212.), a character used in most USDA publications (Weisman 1986Weisman 1986:
Weisman, D. M. 1986. Keys for the identification of some frequently intercepted lepidopterous larvae. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine series 81-47. 64 pp., 1987, Solis 1999Solis 1999:
Solis, M. A. 1999. Key to selected Pyraloidea (Lepidoptera) larvae intercepted at U.S. ports of entry: revision of Pyraloidea in "Keys to some frequently intercepted lepidopterous larvae" by D. M. Weisman 1986. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 101: 645-686., 2011). Other authors have added that, except for some Anagasta, the frontfront:
the frons or frontal area, sometimes including the clypeus
of P. interpunctella extends from 2/3 to 3/4 the distance to the epicranial notchepicranial notch:
the V-shaped dorsomedial space delimited laterally by the cranial halves
(Aitken, 1963Aitken, 1963:
Aitken, A. D. 1963. A key to the larvae of some species of Phycitinae (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) associated with stored products, and of some related species. Bulletin of Entomological Research 54: 175-188., Passoa 1985Passoa 1985:
Passoa, S. 1985. Taxonomy of the larvae and pupae of economically important Pyralidae in Honduras. Master's Thesis. University of Florida. Gainesville. 486 pp.). Other stored product phycitines have a frontfront:
the frons or frontal area, sometimes including the clypeus
that measures only 1/2 that distance (Neunzig 1987Neunzig 1987:
Neunzig, H. H. 1987. Pyralidae (Pyraloidea), pp. 464-494. In F.W. Stehr (ed.). Immature Insects. Kendall Hunt Publishing Company. Dubuque, Iowa.). Weisman (1987)Weisman (1987):
Weisman, D. M. 1987 (1991). Larval moths (Lepidoptera). In: J. R. Gorham (ed.). Insect and mite pests in food. An illustrated key. Volume 1. U. S. Department of Agriculture Handbook 655. 767 pp. noted that SD2 is below the SD1 pinaculumpinaculum:
a small, flat, or slightly elevated chitinized area bearing a seta or setae
on A1-7. Other significant characters for P. interpunctella include the D setaeseta:
a hairlike projection of the body wall that is articulated in a socket; compare to spine
in a horizontal line on A1-7, the L setaeseta:
a hairlike projection of the body wall that is articulated in a socket; compare to spine
of A1 in a vertical line, and that the cuticle is not granulated (Passoa 1985Passoa 1985:
Passoa, S. 1985. Taxonomy of the larvae and pupae of economically important Pyralidae in Honduras. Master's Thesis. University of Florida. Gainesville. 486 pp.). Several species of stored product phycitines have microspinesmicrospines:
minute spines on the body, usually visible only under magnification
on the tarsal segments (Gentry et al. 1991: fig. 4-54c), but the utility of this character is unclear because too few other species have been surveyed.

Identification Authority (Detailed)

Origins are not helpful because P. interpunctella is a cosmopolitan pest. Identifications are more accurate if the larvalarva:
the stages between the egg and pupa of those insects having complete metamorphosis
is associated with stored products from a building or at least is from dried fruits, nuts or similar substrate. Larvaelarva:
the stages between the egg and pupa of those insects having complete metamorphosis
that resemble P. interpunctella from living plant tissue are best left at subfamily because this feeding habit is not typical. A sibling species of Plodia is known from Central America (Neunzig 1990Neunzig 1990:
Neunzig, H. H. 1990. Pyraloidea, Pyralidae (part). In R. B. Dominick et al. (eds.). The moths of America north of Mexico. Fascicle 15.3. The Wedge Entomological Research Foundation. 165 pp.), but there is no evidence it occurs in USDA port interceptions; the larvalarva:
the stages between the egg and pupa of those insects having complete metamorphosis
is unknown.

Lightly sclerotized larvaelarva:
the stages between the egg and pupa of those insects having complete metamorphosis
with faint SD1 rings may be difficult to key to the correct subfamily. Consult our discussion of staining larvaelarva:
the stages between the egg and pupa of those insects having complete metamorphosis
in the Preserving and Studying Larvaelarva:
the stages between the egg and pupa of those insects having complete metamorphosis
section on the Larval Morphology tab.

Origin records

Plodia interpunctella has been intercepted from the following locations:

Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote D'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Laos, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom of Great Britain and N. Ireland, US Virgin Islands, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia

Host records

Plodia interpunctella has been intercepted on the following hosts:

Aegle sp., Agaricus sp., Allium sativum, Allium sp., Amomum sp., Anacardium occidentale, Ananas comosus, Ananas sp., Annona sp., Apium graveolens, Apium sp., Arachis hypogaea, Arachis sp., Arctostaphylos pungens, Areca sp., Arecaceae, Artocarpus heterophyllus, Artocarpus sp., Asclepias sp., Bambusa sp., Berberis vulgaris, Bergera koenigii, Bertholletia excelsa, Bertholletia sp., Borago sp., Brassica chinensis, Brassica oleracea, Brassica oleracea var. capitata, Brassica rapa, Brassica sp., Byrsonima crassifolia, Cajanus cajan, Cannabis sp., Capsicum annuum, Capsicum baccatum, Capsicum pubescens, Capsicum sp., Carthamus tinctorius, Carya illinoinensis, Carya sp., Cassia fistula, Castanea sativa, Castanea sp., Ceratonia siliqua, Ceratonia sp., Chamaemelum nobile, Chenopodium quinoa, Chenopodium sp., Chimonanthus praecox, Chrysanthemum sp., Chrysophyllum sp., Cicer arietinum, Cinnamomum sp., Citrullus lanatus, Citrus aurantiifolia, Citrus sinensis, Citrus sp., Cocos nucifera, Coffea arabica, Coffea canephora, Coffea sp., Cola acuminata, Cola sp., Coriandrum sativum, Corylus sp., Crataegus pinnatifida, Crataegus pubescens, Crataegus sp., Crotolaria sp., Cucumis melo, Cucumis sativus, Cucumis sp., Cucurbita pepo, Cucurbita sp., Cucurbitaceae, Cuminum cyminum, Cuminum sp., Curcubita sp., Cydonia oblonga, Cydonia sp., Dacryodes edulis, Dialium guineense, Dichrostachys cinerea, Dimocarpus longan, Echinacea sp., Eleocharis sp., Eucalyptus sp., Euphorbiaceae, Fabaceae, Fagus sp., Fernaldia pandurata, Ficus carica, Ficus sp., Garcinia sp., Glycine max, Glycine sp., Helianthus annuus, Hibiscus sp., Hordeum vulgare, Hylocereus sp., Hylocereus undatus, Inga edulis, Jasminum sp., Juglans regia, Juglans sp., Kalanchoe sp., Lactuca sativa, Lactuca sp., Lens culinaris, Leonotis leonurus, Lepidium sp., Linum usitatissimum, Luffa sp., Lycium barbarum, Lysiloma sp., Macrotyloma uniflorum, Magnoliophyta sp., Malus domestica, Malus sp., Mammea americana, Manihot esculenta, Manilkara zapota, Meliaceae, Mentha longifolia, Mespilus germanica, Morus alba, Morus nigra, Morus rubra, Morus sp., Murraya koenigii, Musa paradisiaca, Musa sp., Myristica sp., Myrtillocactus geometrizans, Nelumbo nucifera, Nelumbo sp., Nephelium lappaceum, Nicotiana tabacum, Opuntia sp., Oryza sativa, Oryza sp., Paeonia suffruticosa, Panax ginseng, Panax sp., Panicum coloratum, Panicum miliaceum, Panicum sp., Pennisetum glaucum, Persea americana, Phaseolus lunatus, Phaseolus sp., Phaseolus vulgaris, Phoenix canariensis, Phoenix dactylifera, Phoenix sp., Physalis pubescens, Pimpinella anisum, Pinus sp., Piper sp., Pistacia sp., Pistacia terebinthus, Pistacia vera, Pisum sativum, Pisum sp., Pithecellobium dulce, Pithecellobium sp., Platycodon sp., Poaceae, Polygonaceae, Pouteria sapota, Pouteria sp., Prosopis sp., Prunus americana, Prunus armeniaca, Prunus avium, Prunus cerasus, Prunus domestica, Prunus dulcis, Prunus mahaleb, Prunus persica, Prunus sp., Psidium guajava, Psidium sp., Punica granatum, Punica sp., Pyrus communis, Pyrus sp., Quercus sp., Raphanus raphanistrum, Raphanus sp., Rheum rhaponticum, Ribes uva-crispa, Ricinus communis, Rosa laevigata, Rosa sp., Rosmarinus officinalis, Rubus sp., Rubus ursinus, Sapindus sp., Schinus sp., Secale cereale, Sechium edule, Sesamum indicum, Simmondsia chinensis, Solanum lycopersicum var lycopersicum, Solanum melongena, Solanum sp., Solanum torvum, Solidago sp., Sorbus sp., Sorghum bicolor, Sorghum sp., Spinacia oleracea, Spondias dulcis, Spondias mombin, Spondias sp., Tagetes sp., Tamarindus indica, Taraxacum officinale, Taraxacum sp., Telfairia occidentalis, Tetrapleura sp., Theobroma cacao, Trifolium repens, Trigonella foenum-graecum, Triticum aestivum, Triticum durum, Triticum sp., Triticum vulgare, Tuber sp., Tulipa sp., Vaccinium sp., Vicia faba, Vigna radiata, Vigna sp., Vigna unguiculata, Vitis sp., Vitis vinifera, Zea mays, Zea sp., Zingiber officinale, Ziziphus jujuba, Ziziphus mauritiana, Ziziphus sp.