Brown china mark moth
Elophila nymphaeata
This description was machine-translated.
How to spot it
The brown china mark moth (Elophila nymphaeata) is a small moth whose caterpillars feed on floating leaved plants such as water lily and pond lily. The caterpillars cut oval pieces out of the leaves and spin them into small, floating cases in which they hide and go on feeding. You recognise the infestation by holed, window like translucent leaves and by the drifting little tubes of leaf pieces on the water surface. Where the attack is severe, whole floating leaves can fall apart.
Prevention
Regularly skimming the floating leaf cases off with a net noticeably reduces the infestation, especially early in the season. A pond in healthy balance with enough fish as well as dragonfly larvae as natural antagonists usually keeps the population in check by itself. Badly infested leaves can simply be cut off and disposed of, so that the caterpillars do not spread further. Planting that is not too dense, with some open water surface, makes egg laying harder for the moths and prevents new infestation.
Affected plants
These plants in our database are especially susceptible.
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