Fumibotys

Fumibotys
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Crambidae
Genus:	Fumibotys Munroe, 1976[1]
Species:	F. fumalis
Binomial name
Fumibotys fumalis (Guenée, 1854)
Synonyms
Ebulea fumalis Guenée, 1854 Botis badipennis Grote, 1873 Scopula orasusalis Walker, 1859

Fumibotys is a genus of moths of the Crambidae family which was described in Guenée by 1854. It contains only one species, Fumibotys fumalis, the mint root borer moth, which is found in most of North America.^[2]

The wingspan is about 20 millimetres (0.79 in). The forewings are orangish to light brown with a large dark patch near the middle of the wing. Adults are on wing from June to August.

Young larvae feed on the leaves of Mentha species, while older larvae feed on the roots and rhizomes of their host plant. Young larvae are 2–3 millimetres (0.079–0.118 in) long. They are yellow to light green with dark stripes. Older larvae reach a length of 19 millimetres (0.75 in). They have a yellow-tan body and a red-brown head. The species overwinters in the prepupal stage in the soil around the roots of their host. Pupation takes place in spring.^[3]

References