Description of Coleophoridae
The Coleophorid moths are members of the Superfamily Gelechioidea. They have an uneven distribution worldwide, with the majority of the 1,100 described species found in northern temperate regions, but some species groups found in the Southern Hemisphere. Many additional species have yet to be named or described. Coleophorids are typically tiny to small slender moths with lancelike wings (wingspan 0.5-2.6 cm). They are mostly dull colored, yellowish, white, gray, or brownish moths, often with linear, pale or dark streaks on the forewing. Larvae are slender in shape and nearly always live in a portable case constructed of silk covered with frass, sand grains, or bits of plant material. They are leaf, seed, and stem miners, feeding outward as far as possible without leaving the affixed case.