Phyllonorycter scudderella

Phyllonorycter scudderella
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Gracillariidae
Genus:	Phyllonorycter
Species:	P. scudderella
Binomial name
Phyllonorycter scudderella (Frey & Boll, 1873)[1]
Synonyms
Lithocolletis scudderella Frey and Boll, 1873 Lithocolletis salicivorella Braun, 1908 Phyllonorycter salicivorella

Phyllonorycter scudderella is a moth of the Gracillariidae family. It is widespread in eastern North America from Ontario to Ohio and in western North America from south-eastern Alaska to Oregon.

The length of the forewings is 3-4.3 mm. Adults are on wing from mid-March to early May and from late June to early October. There are probably two generations per year.

The larvae feed on Salix babylonica, Salix bebbiana, Salix discolor and Salix candida species. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine has the form of a small tentiform blotch on the underside of the leaf. It is located between the veins. It is elongate-oval and somewhat wrinkled.

References

1. Biology and Systematics of the North American Phyllonorycter Leafminers on Salicaceae, with a Synoptic Catalog of the Palearctic Species (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae)