| | Insects of Britain and Ireland: the genus Phyllonorycter (Lepidoptera-Gracillariidae) |
Associated with trees and shrubs. On Rosaceae; Crataegus, Cydonia, Malus, Mespilus, Prunus, Pyracantha (mainly), Sorbus, Pyrus (mainly on Pyracantha coccinea (Firethorn), “and various other rosaceous trees and shrubs” (Bradley, 2000)).
Larvae. The larvae mining in leaves; in the upper-side (ultimately resulting in a silvery red-flecked blister which entirely covers small leaves). Found in July, or January to April, or October to December.
Adults. Antennae white to the base (or whitish, obscurely fuscous-ringed). Face (frons) white. Thorax white and brown (bright golden brown, with white central line and edging); with a conspicuous median pale streak. Wing-span 7–8 mm. Forewings not clear shining white; lacking dark transverse fasciae; lacking the oblique golden brown fascia from the base of the costa exhibited by P. roboris; with a well defined basal streak. The basal streak pale; straight, neither markedly long and slender nor sinuate; not dark-edged above. Forewings with well defined pale strigulae. Costal strigulae 3, or 4; white (-ish). The fasciae and strigulae inwardly sharply dark-edged. The first costal strigula dark-margined posteriorly. Dorsal strigulae 2. Forewings with the first costal strigula approaching a dorsal one at an acute angle; without transverse pale fasciae. Forewings with conspicuous dark apical marking. Forewing apical marking comprising a round blackish apical spot. Hindwing cilia white. Posterior tarsi whitish, without dark spots.
The left and right male genital valvae similar in size and form (distally broad, obovate or clavate). The left male genital valva not spine-tipped. The left and right male genital valvae having free costae. The left and right free costae completely detached from the valvae; similar (very short, spine-tipped). The aedeagus long and relatively slender with a triangular barb towards the apex.
General comments. An adventive colonist, described and illustrated by Emmet in Ent. Record 101 (1989). Genitalia: Gustafsson (2007): http://www2.nrm.se/en/svenska_fjarilar/svenska_fjarilar.html#DV.
Illustrations. • Phyllonorycter leucographella: from Emmet (1989). • Phyllonorycter leucographella: Ben Smart (2018), UKmoths https://ukmoths.org.uk/. • P. leucographella mine in Crataegus: Ian Kimber (2018), UKmoths https://ukmoths.org.uk/.
We advise against extracting comparative information from the descriptions. This is much more easily achieved using the DELTA data files or the interactive key, which allows access to the character list, illustrations, full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, and distributions of character states within any set of taxa. See also Guidelines for using data taken from Web publications.
Cite this publication as: ‘Watson, L., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2003 onwards. Insects of Britain and Ireland: the genus Phyllonorycter (Lepidoptera-Gracillariidae) Version: 14th April 2022. delta-intkey.com’.
