Phyllonorycter klimeschiella
Encyclopedia
Phyllonorycter klimeschiella is a moth
of the Gracillariidae
family. It is known from the Canary Islands
.
The larva
e feed on Arbutus canariensis
. They mine
the leaves of their host plant. The mine starts as a lower-surface epidermal corridor along the midrib. Later, it becomes a tentiform mine with one Y-shaped fold. The frass
is mostly scattered throughout the mine, or sometimes deposited in a clump. The roof of the mine is completely eaten out. Pupation takes place within the mine in a cocoon covered with frass.
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 the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
.
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 Arbutus canariensis
Arbutus canariensis
Arbutus canariensis is a species of shrub or tree in the Ericaceae family. It is endemic to the Canary Islands of Spain. It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:* Bañares, A. et al. 1998. . Downloaded on 20 August 2007....
. 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 starts as a lower-surface epidermal corridor along the midrib. Later, it becomes a tentiform mine with one Y-shaped fold. 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...
is mostly scattered throughout the mine, or sometimes deposited in a clump. The roof of the mine is completely eaten out. Pupation takes place within the mine in a cocoon covered with frass.