Stigmella juglandifoliella
Encyclopedia
The Pecan Serpentine Leafminer (Stigmella juglandifoliella) is a moth
of the Nepticulidae
family. It is found in Ohio
, Pennsylvania
and Kentucky
.
The wingspan
is 3.5-3.8 mm. There are probably two generations per year.
The larvae feed on Carya illinoinensis
. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine consists of linear (serpentine) mines, just beneath the upper surface of the leaf. If the egg is laid near the center of the leaflet, the early bends of the resulting mine may lie around each other in a spiral because the larvae are unable to cross leaflet veins. If the egg is laid near the margin of the leaf, the mines will often follow leaflet margins.
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 Nepticulidae
Nepticulidae
Nepticulidae is a family of very small moths with a worldwide distribution. They are characterised by eyecaps over the eyes . These pigmy moths or midget moths, as they are commonly known, include the smallest of all living moths, with a wingspan that can be as little as 3 mm...
family. It is found in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
.
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 3.5-3.8 mm. There are probably two generations per year.
The larvae feed on Carya illinoinensis
Pecan
The pecan , Carya illinoinensis, is a species of hickory, native to south-central North America, in Mexico from Coahuila south to Jalisco and Veracruz, in the United States from southern Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana east to western Kentucky, southwestern Ohio, North Carolina, South...
. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine consists of linear (serpentine) mines, just beneath the upper surface of the leaf. If the egg is laid near the center of the leaflet, the early bends of the resulting mine may lie around each other in a spiral because the larvae are unable to cross leaflet veins. If the egg is laid near the margin of the leaf, the mines will often follow leaflet margins.