Brown oak slender vs Clover Hayworm Moth

Acrocercops brongniardella compared with Hypsopygia costalis

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Brown oak slender	Clover Hayworm Moth
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order same	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Gracillariidae	Pyralidae
Genus	Acrocercops	Hypsopygia
Species	Acrocercops brongniardella	Hypsopygia costalis

Evolutionary Relationship

Brown oak slender and Clover Hayworm Moth share a common ancestor at the Order level: Lepidoptera. (Butterflies & Moths)

Conservation Status

Brown oak slender

LC — Least Concern

Clover Hayworm Moth

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Brown oak slender	Clover Hayworm Moth
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Brown oak slender

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Found across Europe (9 countries).

Clover Hayworm Moth

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Found across Europe (5 countries) and North America (Canada, United States).

Brown oak slender

The Brown Oak Slender (Acrocercops brongniardella) is a species in the genus Acrocercops. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Clover Hayworm Moth

The clover hayworm moth (Hypsopygia costalis) is a pyralid moth in the family Pyralidae, subfamily Hypsopygia, order Lepidoptera. The common name hayworm moth reflects the larval habit of feeding on dry plant material, including stored hay, dried plant debris, leaf litter, and decaying organic matter — a diet unusual among moths, most of which feed on living plant tissue. Larvae of H. costalis inhabit accumulated plant detritus such as thatch, stored grass clippings, compost, and dry stacks of hay or straw, earning the species its association with agricultural storage environments. Adults are small, brightly colored moths with distinctive red, yellow, and ochre wing markings that make them more visible than many pyralids, potentially functioning as aposematic coloration or mimicry. The species is distributed across Europe, including France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, extending to North America. It inhabits a variety of habitats wherever decaying plant material accumulates, including agricultural settings, gardens, woodland edges, and semi-natural grasslands. H. costalis is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, with populations considered stable and the species not subject to significant threats. The species has one generation per year in most of its range, with adults flying from late spring through summer. Larvae overwinter in plant debris. H. costalis rarely causes significant economic damage despite its association with stored plant material.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden