About Stigmella tityrella (Stainton, 1854) Hering, 1957
Stigmella tityrella is a moth species belonging to the family Nepticulidae. This species is found across all of Europe west of Russia. Its wingspan measures 5 to 6 mm. The thick, erect hairs covering its head vertex are ochreous-yellowish in color. The moth's collar is white, and its antennal eyecaps are also white. The forewings are shining bronzy-brown, with a moderately oblique shining golden-silvery fascia located beyond the middle; the apical area beyond this fascia is dark bronzy-brown. The hindwings are grey; males have an expansible pencil of blackish hairs at the base of the costa. Adults are active on the wing from April to May, and again from July to August. There are two generations produced each year. The larvae feed on beech (Fagus sylvatica), and they create mines within the leaves of their host plant. The mine formed by the larvae is a corridor that does not widen significantly, and it zigzags between two lateral veins toward the leaf margin.
