Phyllonorycter basistrigella
Encyclopedia
Phyllonorycter basistrigella is a moth
of the Gracillariidae
family. It is known from Québec
and the United States
(including Connecticut, Illinois, Oregon, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, New York, Vermont, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, California and Missouri).
The wingspan
is about 8 mm.
The larva
e feed on Quercus species, including Quercus alba, Quercus bicolor, Quercus castanea, Quercus coccinea, Quercus kelloggii, Quercus macrocarpa, Quercus prinoides
, Quercus prinus, Quercus rubra, Quercus stellata, Quercus tinctoria and Quercus velutina. They mine
the leaves of their host plant. The mine has the form of a tentiform mine on the underside the leaf. The mine lies between two veins and is nearly rectangular in shape and unwrinkled. At the time of pupation, the frass
, which has been deposited along the edges of the mine, is collected and made into an oval ring-like wall of the cocoon, leaving the cuticle transparent, through which the pupa is plainly visible.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Gracillariidae
Gracillariidae
Gracillariidae is an important family of insects in the order Lepidoptera and the principal family of leaf miners that includes several economic, horticultural or recently invasive pest species such as the horse-chestnut leaf miner, Cameraria ohridella....
family. It is known from Québec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(including Connecticut, Illinois, Oregon, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, New York, Vermont, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, California and Missouri).
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is about 8 mm.
The larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e feed on Quercus species, including Quercus alba, Quercus bicolor, Quercus castanea, Quercus coccinea, Quercus kelloggii, Quercus macrocarpa, Quercus prinoides
Quercus prinoides
Quercus prinoides, commonly known as Dwarf Chinkapin Oak, Dwarf Chinquapin Oak, Dwarf Chestnut Oak or Scrub Chestnut Oak, is a shrubby, clone-forming oak native to eastern North America, ranging from Massachusetts to the Carolinian forest zone of southern Ontario to Minnesota, south to North...
, Quercus prinus, Quercus rubra, Quercus stellata, Quercus tinctoria and Quercus velutina. They mine
Leaf miner
Leaf miner is a term used to describe the larvae of many different species of insect which live in and eat the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths , sawflies and flies , though some beetles and wasps also exhibit this behavior.Like Woodboring beetles, leaf...
the leaves of their host plant. The mine has the form of a tentiform mine on the underside the leaf. The mine lies between two veins and is nearly rectangular in shape and unwrinkled. At the time of pupation, the frass
Frass
Frass is the fine powdery material phytophagous insects pass as waste after digesting plant parts. It causes plants to excrete chitinase due to high chitin levels, it is a natural bloom stimulant, and has high nutrient levels. Frass is known to have abundant amoeba, beneficial bacteria, and fungi...
, which has been deposited along the edges of the mine, is collected and made into an oval ring-like wall of the cocoon, leaving the cuticle transparent, through which the pupa is plainly visible.