Clothes moths larvae, either the webbing clothes moth or case making moth. Size: Their bodies are about 3/8 to 1/2 inches long, while larvae are up to 1/2 inch long. It is possible that Case Bearing Moth Larvae my eat organic fibers and protein, hence being considered Household Pests. Case bearing clothes moth larvae love to eat the natural fibers in our clothes and other soft-goods. Case making Clothes Moth image licensed under CC. The one on the picture has gathered quite a few small sticks to make a casing with horizontal lines. These spots can be rubbed off on older moths. The entire thing is about half an inch long. Adult case-bearing carpet moth. Especially with the sandy collar area. The larva makes a portable case for itself out of wool and other fibres. Incorporated into the silken case are fibers from materials the larva have fed on. Eventually the larva will pupate in the case. The larva lives in the case. Adult Casemaking Clothes Moth (Actual Size 1/2 Inch) As the larvae spins, a protective "case" is made of the same fiber that it is digesting. This is one of the few moth species that can damage clothing and carpets but you can deter them from households. It can look like an empty case or shell. The adult moth is a pale silvery grey-brown with dark spots, and approximately 7mm long. Rather confusingly most of these moth species will sometimes switch from carpets to clothes and … It is known from the eastern half of Australia, including Tasmania.. Photograph: Alamy. Characteristics: Their wings are long and narrow. It’s made of silk fiber, sand, lint, and other miscellaneous debris. Keep in mind it's the larvae of the moth that are causing the destruction. Unlike the webbing clothes moth, casemaking clothes moths seldom incorporate webbing or cocoons into the materials on which they are feeding. A braconid wasp, Apanteles carpatus (Say), parasitizes larvae of case-bearing moths, killing the larva before pupation. Color: Casemaking clothes moths have brownish-gray wings with three dark spots. As always, the best way to discourage these guys is to remove their food source. Larvae are yellowish in color. In outside buildings it has one generation, however, in heated buildings it can have two or more generations. Case moths, bag moths or bagworms Fact Sheet Case moth. In Florida, this braconid and an ichneumonid wasp, Lymeon orbum (Say), were reared from the household casebearer (Hetrick 1957). Because case moth larvae have to make use of the materials they find to make their casing, they can look very differently. Other common names for case moths are bagworms. Image: QM, Jeff Wright Introduction Case moths, bag moths or bagworms are names given to a group of moths (Family Psychidae) whose caterpillars make portable homes from silk, usually attaching plant material, detritus or sand grains to the outside. It is a good idea to invest in some airtight storage bags or boxes for any important wool or cotton clothing. Perhaps they have never had a chance to emerge as tiny adult moths because you have discovered them and cleaned them away. Sometimes, the larvae is hard to spot, since it is the same color and texture of the fabric. The Casemaking Clothes Moth is not as common as the Webbing Clothes Moth. Saunders' case moth or the large bagworm (Metura elongatus) is a moth of the Psychidae family. Adult males have black wings, an orange hairy head and a black and orange banded abdomen. Very fashionable! The openings at the end allow the larvae to move and to eat. Caterpillars of each Although they do play a very important role in ecosystems by cleaning up all sorts of debris, they are wreaking havoc inside of people's homes. The casemaking clothes moth encloses itself in an open-ended tubular case, which it drags about wherever it goes. Plaster bagworms are a close relative of the clothes moth. The wingspan is about 30 mm for males. Slit-like openings are located at each end.