Pancalia leuwenhoekella

Pancalia leuwenhoekella
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Cosmopterigidae
Genus:	Pancalia
Species:	P. leuwenhoekella
Binomial name
Pancalia leuwenhoekella (Linnaeus, 1761)
Synonyms
Phalaena leuwenhoekella Linnaeus, 1761 Phalaena leuvenhoekella Linnaeus, 1767 Tinea leuwenhockella Denis & Schiffermuller, 1775 Oecophora schmidtella Treitschke, 1833 Pancalia leeuwenhoeckella

Pancalia leuwenhoekella is a moth in the family Cosmopterigidae. It is found in nearly all of Europe. In the east, the range extends to Asia Minor, the Caucasus, south-western Siberia and the Russian Far East.

The wingspan is 10–12 mm. Adults are on wing from April to June.

The larvae feed on Viola_(plant) species, including Viola tricolor, Viola hirta and Viola canina. They initially mine the leaf stem of their host plant. In this stage, frass is ejected out of the mine through a hole. Later, the larvae feed on the bast fibre of the subterranean parts of the plant from within a silken tunnel. Pupation takes place in a cocoon made of silk and covered with sand.

Subspecies

• Pancalia leuwenhoekella leuwenhoekella
• Pancalia leuwenhoekella japonica Riedl, 1973 (Japan: Honshu)
• Pancalia leuwenhoekella mandshuricella Sinev, 1985 (Russian Far East)