| Phyllocnistis | |
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| Phyllocnistis maxberryi | |
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| Genus: | Phyllocnistis Zeller, 1848 |
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Phyllocnistis is a genus of moths in the family Gracillariidae.
| Phyllocnistis | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Phyllocnistis maxberryi | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Order: | |
| Infraorder: | |
| Family: | |
| Subfamily: | |
| Genus: | Phyllocnistis Zeller, 1848 |
| Species | |
See text | |
Phyllocnistis is a genus of moths in the family Gracillariidae.
Adults of the genus Phyllocnistis are very small moths with wingspans generally not exceeding 5 mm. Both fore- and hindwings are lanceolate and predominantly white. The forewings are marked with yellow to orange, longitudinal and oblique striae, often bordered by gray or black. A few species are known to possess much darker or strikingly color patterns. The compound eyes of Phyllocnistis are reduced, with an interocular index (vertical eye diameter/minimum interocular distance) of approximately 0.9. The maxillary palpi are the most reduced among Gracillariidae, being barely evident as vestigial, non-segmented lobes at the base of the elongate proboscis. The wing venation is also reduced.
The larvae of Phyllocnistis are among the most specialized Lepidoptera. Four instars appear to be the norm, with the first three instars possessing a sapfeeding morphology and behavior. Sapfeeding instars create a long serpentine, subepidermal mine on either the upper or lower surfaces of the host leaf. A few species also form subepidermal mines on stems and various fruits, including avocado. A characteristic, median frass trail extends the length of the mine, usually as a dark, unbroken line. The fourth instar is a highly specialized, apodal, non-feeding instar whose primary function is to spin the cocoon, at the mine terminus, prior to pupation.
In contrast to the conservative morphology of the larval and adult stages, the pupae of Phyllocnistis are structurally diverse, particularly with regard to the development of the frontal process (cocoon-cutter) of the head. In addition, the mid-dorsal areas of abdominal terga 3–7 possess a mostly symmetrical cluster of recurved spines that frequently differ in their arrangement and form among species. [1]
Phyllocnistis can be found on many host plants, and have been noted on plants from at least 20 families. [2] One well-known species is the citrus leafminer (Phyllocnistis citrella), a pest of plants in the family Rutaceae, especially citrus. [3]
As of 2012, about 126 Phyllocnistis species have been described. This is probably a fraction of the true diversity of the genus, especially in the tropics, where there may be hundreds of species yet to be collected. [2]
A leaf miner is any one of numerous species of insects in which the larval stage lives in, and eats, the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths (Lepidoptera), sawflies, and flies (Diptera). Some beetles also exhibit this behavior.
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.
Scoparia is a grass moth genus of subfamily Scopariinae. Some authors have assigned the synonymous taxon Sineudonia to the snout moth family (Pyralidae), where all grass moths were once also included, but this seems to be in error.
Phyllocnistis tropaeolicola is a moth of the family Gracillariidae. It is known only from Cerro de la Muerte, Villa Mills, at 3,100 m elevation in the Cordillera de Talamanca in Costa Rica.
Leucoptera is a genus of moths in the family Lyonetiidae. Its members are leaf borers many of which can cause severe damage to plant crops, such as coffee or apples.
Phyllonorycter is a genus of moths in the family Gracillariidae.
Parornix is a genus of moths in the family Gracillariidae.
Caloptilia is a genus of moths in the family Gracillariidae.
Acrocercops is a genus of moths in the family Gracillariidae.
Parectopa is a genus of moths in the family Gracillariidae.
Phyllocnistis magnoliella is a moth of the family Gracillariidae, known from the United States. The hostplants for the species include Magnolia acuminata, Magnolia grandiflora, Magnolia umbrella, and Magnolia virginiana.
Caloptilia alnivorella, the alder leafminer, is a moth of the family Gracillariidae. The species was first described by Vactor Tousey Chambers in 1875. It is known from the Russian Far East, Canada and the United States.
Phyllocnistis hyperpersea is a moth of the family Gracillariidae. It is found from Nansemond and Virginia Beach Counties in Virginia, south along the lowland Atlantic coastal region to the Florida Everglades. It might have a much wider range, since material which might belong to this species has been recorded from Honduras and Mexico.
Phyllocnistis subpersea is a moth of the family Gracillariidae. It is found in the Dade and Monroe Counties of Florida. Mines of what appear to be this species have been found as far north as the Green Swamp in coastal South Carolina.
Gracillariinae are a subfamily of moths which was described by Henry Tibbats Stainton in 1854.
Musotiminae is a subfamily of the lepidopteran family Crambidae. It was described by Edward Meyrick in 1884
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