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Digital Guide to Moth Identification

Tineidae 300197 – 0432.1   Opogona sacchari (Bojer, 1856)              Banana Moth

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Distribution: USA: FL; Eurasia. Larva and Host Plants: Host familiy: Agavaceae Alliaceae[Amaryllidaceae] Amaryllidaceae Apocynaceae Arecaceae Arecaceae Araceae Araliaceae Asparagaceae Asteraceae Begoniaceae Bromeliaceae Caricaceae Cactaceae Convolvulaceae Crassulaceae ..  Host genera: Adonidia[=Veitchia] Aechmea Aiphanes[=Bactris] Albizia Allium Alocasia Aloe Ananas Aralia Areca Bactris Bambusa Beaucarnea Begonia Bougainvillea Caesalpinia Capsicum Carica Chamaedorea Chrysalidocarpu...  Notes: polyphagous and on decaying wood of various trees (Jaworski 2018); beneath leaf sheaths or tunneling in petioles, fleshy leaves, inflorescences, stems, or roots (Eiseman 2024a); .  (Shropshire & Douglas 2025) Similar Species: Pinned specimens of related species. (Hint: select View by Region on the related species page.) Synonymy: sacchari (Bojer, 1856) (Alucita) - MONA 1983: [NEW]; TL: Rishiri Island, Japan. ligniferella (Walker, 1875) (Gelechia) plumipes (Butler, 1876) (Laverna) sanctaehelenae (Walker, 1875) (Gelechia) subcervinella (Walker, 1863) (Tinea) Taxonomic Notes: Opogona sacchari (Bojer, 1856) is now recognized within the North American fauna north of Mexico from Florida in Davis & Pena (1990).

References (Caution: DNA barcoding at BOLD provides evidence of relatedness, not proof of identification; some BOLD specimens shown may not be sequenced.)

Barcode of Life (BOLD) - Caution: Identifications often erroneous; DNA barcode provides evidence of relatedness, not proof of identification; many specimens not sequenced. Davis, D.R. & J.E. Pena, 1990. Biology and morphology of the banana moth, Opogona sacchari (Bojer), and its introduction into Florida (Lepidoptera: Tineidae). Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology, 282: 1-39. Shropshire, K.J. & D.W. Tallamy, 2025. Lepidoptera of North America, north of Mexico: an annotated list containing geographic ranges and host-plant records. ZooKeys, 1261: 101-113; Suppl. 1. (PDF or read online) Species Page at BugGuide.Net Species Page at iNaturalist

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