About Adaina microdactyla (Hübner, 1813)
Adaina microdactyla is a moth species in the family Pterophoridae that was first described by Jacob Hübner in 1813. It is also commonly called the hemp-agrimony plume. This moth has a wingspan of 13–17 mm. Its forewings are whitish yellowish, with scattered blackish speckles. Features of the forewings include a dot in the disc at one-third length, a mark at the base of the wing fissure, a distinct mark on the costa beyond the fissure, a less distinct mark towards the apex, and some unclear blackish dots on the margins of the wing segments. The hindwings are grey. Flesh-coloured larvae have a slightly paler dorsal line and many rough points across the dorsum, with a pale yellowish-brown head. In western Europe, adult moths are active in two generations: one in May and June, and a second in August. The larvae feed on hemp-agrimony (Eupatorium cannabinum), Indian camphorweed (Pluchea indica), European goldenrod (Solidago virgaurea) and Brassica species. This species has two broods per year; the first brood bores into stems and forms galls, while the second brood feeds on flowers, though the flower feeding behaviour has not been recently confirmed. Adaina microdactyla has a broad distribution. It occurs across the Palearctic realm, ranging from Europe through to Korea, Japan and China, as well as in Asia Minor, Iran, Vietnam, the Solomon Islands, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. It is also present in Africa, where it has been recorded in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Madagascar.
