Acleris variegana
Encyclopedia
The garden rose tortricid moth or fruit tortricid (Acleris variegana) is a moth
of the family Tortricidae
. It has a Palaearctic distribution. The moth flies from July to September mainly at night and is attracted to bright lights. The larvae feed on various trees and shrubs including rose
and apple
.
is 14–20 mm (0.551181102362205–0.78740157480315 ).
is yellowish with a shiny brown head. The pupa
is 8 millimetre long. Hatching caterpillars in spring eat fruit buds. Later they tie leaves into bundles with the help of webbing that they spin. They can skeletonize young leaves and also do damage to buds, flowers, ovaries and unripe fruits. In spring, eggs are laid in large batches. Moths of summer generations lay eggs one by one or in small batches of three to six eggs on leaves
, petioles
and shoot
s. Over-wintering eggs are found close to fruit buds.
, cherry
, hawthorn
, almond
s, cotoneaster
and bird cherry
. Other species on which they occasionally feed include hazel
, oak
, elm
, willow
and shrubs of the genus Vaccinium
. They can be controlled by chemical or biological methods.
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 family Tortricidae
Tortricidae
Tortricidae is a family of moths, commonly known as tortrix moths, in the order Lepidoptera. Tortricidae is a large family with over 9,400 species described, and is the sole member of the superfamily Tortricoidea. Many of these are economically important pests. Olethreutidae is a junior synonym...
. It has a Palaearctic distribution. The moth flies from July to September mainly at night and is attracted to bright lights. The larvae feed on various trees and shrubs including rose
Rose
A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...
and apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
.
Morphology
The fore wing is parallel-sided with an oblique external margin. The basal half is white or yellowish-white and there is a grayish-brown triangular spot close to the wing root. The distal part of the wing is reddish- or violet-brown, edged by a narrow grayish-yellow strip. The hind wing is brownish-gray. The wingspanWingspan
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 14–20 mm (0.551181102362205–0.78740157480315 ).
Biology
The eggs are oval, light yellow for the summer generation and milky-white or orange for over-wintering eggs. The larvaLarva
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...
is yellowish with a shiny brown head. The pupa
Pupa
A pupa is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation. The pupal stage is found only in holometabolous insects, those that undergo a complete metamorphosis, going through four life stages; embryo, larva, pupa and imago...
is 8 millimetre long. Hatching caterpillars in spring eat fruit buds. Later they tie leaves into bundles with the help of webbing that they spin. They can skeletonize young leaves and also do damage to buds, flowers, ovaries and unripe fruits. In spring, eggs are laid in large batches. Moths of summer generations lay eggs one by one or in small batches of three to six eggs on leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
, petioles
Petiole (botany)
In botany, the petiole is the stalk attaching the leaf blade to the stem. The petiole usually has the same internal structure as the stem. Outgrowths appearing on each side of the petiole are called stipules. Leaves lacking a petiole are called sessile, or clasping when they partly surround the...
and shoot
Shoot
Shoots are new plant growth, they can include stems, flowering stems with flower buds, and leaves. The new growth from seed germination that grows upward is a shoot where leaves will develop...
s. Over-wintering eggs are found close to fruit buds.
Distribution
This is a common species all over Europe and can also be found in Northern and Central Asia, China, Japan and North America.Economic significance
The species is a significant pest of plants in the rose family including the rose, apple, pear, plum, sloe and apricot where it is mainly the first generation larvae that do the most damage. Caterpillars also cause damage to quinceQuince
The quince , or Cydonia oblonga, is the sole member of the genus Cydonia and native to warm-temperate southwest Asia in the Caucasus region...
, cherry
Cherry
The cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus Prunus, and is a fleshy stone fruit. The cherry fruits of commerce are usually obtained from a limited number of species, including especially cultivars of the wild cherry, Prunus avium....
, hawthorn
Crataegus
Crataegus , commonly called hawthorn or thornapple, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the rose family, Rosaceae, native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere in Europe, Asia and North America. The name hawthorn was originally applied to the species native to northern Europe,...
, almond
Almond
The almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...
s, cotoneaster
Cotoneaster
Cotoneaster is a genus of woody plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, native to the Palaearctic region , with a strong concentration of diversity in the genus in the mountains of southwestern China and the Himalayas...
and bird cherry
Bird cherry
The bird cherries are a subgenus of the genus Prunus, characterised by having deciduous leaves, flowers 12-30 together on slender racemes produced in late spring well after leaf emergence, and small, sour fruit usually only palatable to birds, hence the name...
. Other species on which they occasionally feed include hazel
Hazel
The hazels are a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate northern hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae, though some botanists split the hazels into a separate family Corylaceae.They have simple, rounded leaves with double-serrate margins...
, oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
, elm
Elm
Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the genus Ulmus in the plant family Ulmaceae. The dozens of species are found in temperate and tropical-montane regions of North America and Eurasia, ranging southward into Indonesia. Elms are components of many kinds of natural forests...
, willow
Willow
Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
and shrubs of the genus Vaccinium
Vaccinium
Vaccinium is a genus of shrubs or dwarf shrubs in the plant Family Ericaceae. The fruit of many species are eaten by humans and some are of commercial importance, including the cranberry, blueberry, bilberry or whortleberry, lingonberry or cowberry, and huckleberry...
. They can be controlled by chemical or biological methods.