CreatureData

Meal moth

Pyralis farinalis Linnaeus, 1758

Status not recordedbutterflies and moths

The meal moth (Pyralis farinalis) is a species in the family Pyralidae, order Lepidoptera.

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Quick facts about the meal moth

Weight
Not recorded
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Young per litter or clutch
Not recorded
Conservation status
Not recorded
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the meal moth live?

Not recorded

Where has it been introduced?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the meal moth as introduced in 5 countries.

  1. Canary Islands
  2. Ireland
  3. Japan
  4. Russia
  5. United States

Introduced means brought by people and now present; invasive means the country's checklist records an impact. A species can be native to one part of a country and introduced in another. Source: Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (CC BY 4.0).

Is the meal moth endangered?

No conservation assessment is recorded for this species in our sources. That is not the same as being safe: it has not been matched to an assessment.

How is the meal moth classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumArthropoda
  3. classInsecta
  4. orderLepidoptera
  5. familyPyralidae
  6. genusPyralis
  7. SpeciesPyralis farinalis Linnaeus, 1758

Synonyms Asopia domesticalis, Asopia farinalis, Botys farinalis, Phalaena erecta, Phalaena farinalis, Pyralis domesticalis, Pyralis erecta, Pyralis farinatus, Pyralis fraterna, Pyralis marianii, Pyralis meridionalis, Pyralis orientalis, Pyralis sardoplumbea, Pyralis tenerifensis

Other names and names in other languages (34)
  • عثة الطحينArabic
  • Агнёўка мучнаяBelarusian
  • Arna del graCatalan
  • zavíječ domácíCzech
  • Gwyfyn BlawdWelsh
  • MelmølDanish
  • MehlzünslerGerman
  • Polilla parda de la harinaSpanish
  • KirjuleedikEstonian
  • lesekoisaFinnish
  • Pyrale de la farineFrench
  • LisztiloncaHungarian
  • Asopia della farinaItalian
  • カシノシマメイガJapanese
  • 밀가루줄명나방Korean
  • Miltinis ugniukasLithuanian
  • forrådshalmmottNorwegian Bokmål
  • MeellichtmotDutch
  • zadarlica śpiżarniankaPolish
  • Abuínha-parda-da-farinhaPortuguese
  • Огнёвка мучнаяRussian
  • vijačka domováSlovak
  • mjölmottSwedish
  • Un GüvesiTurkish
  • Вогнівка борошнянаUkrainian
  • Gwyfynod BlawdWelsh
  • Stort melmølDanish
  • Asopie de la farineFrench
  • Piralide della farinaItalian
  • Tignola della farinaItalian
  • grote meelmotDutch
  • Zadarlica spiżarniankaPolish
  • farinmjölmottSwedish
  • Yiyecek güvesiTurkish

Catalogue of Life

Relatives of the meal moth

Other species in the same genus Pyralis.

CompareMeal moth vs Scarce tabbyMeal moth vs Tropical tabbyMeal moth vs Painted meal mothMeal moth vs Pyralis aerealis

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

Is the meal moth an invasive species?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the meal moth as introduced in 5 countries: Canary Islands, Ireland, Japan, Russia and United States, but does not flag it as invasive in any of them.

What kind of animal is the meal moth?

The meal moth (Pyralis farinalis) belongs to the family Pyralidae in the order Lepidoptera.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-14. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Meal moth (Pyralis farinalis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/pyralis-farinalis

MLA

“Meal moth (Pyralis farinalis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/pyralis-farinalis.

BibTeX
@misc{pyralis_farinalis_2026,
  title = {Meal moth (Pyralis farinalis)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/pyralis-farinalis},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-14}
}