THE LIFE CYCLE OF A CLOTHES MOTH
From egg to adult, how these moths grow up eating your clothes
5 CARRY CASE
The larvae of the case-bearing moth do as their name suggests,carrying their silk home around with them while they eat.
2 DEATH
Once her eggs are laid, the female moth will die. However, males outlive females, continuing to mate for up to a year.
6 DEVELOPMENT
Larvae have at least five development stages that cause them to moult over a period of time, which can last between 35 days and two-and-a-half years.
3 HATCHING
Moth larvae hatch after between four and ten days during the summer months.
7 METAMORPHOSIS
Once the larval stage is complete, they will create a silken cocoon, and while inside will metamorphosis in adult moths. This process takes between 10 and 50 days.
1 EGGS
Both webbing and case-bearing female moths will lay between 40 and 50 eggs within natural fibres in a two to three week period.
4 SILK TUNNELS
The webbing moth’s larvae spin a tunnel of silk for camouflage, which they emerge from at night to feed on fibres.
8 ADULTHOOD
As soon as they emerge from their cocoons, adults will run – not fly – around on fabrics or carpet in a frenzy to find a mate. Females will lay new eggs in one to two days