Lyonetia prunifoliella
Encyclopedia
Lyonetia prunifoliella is a moth
in the Lyonetiidae
family. It is found in most of Europe
, except Ireland
, the Iberian Peninsula
, and the Mediterranean Islands. It was considered extinct in Great Britain
, but has recently been recorded. It is also known from Turkey
, Kazakhstan
, south-eastern Siberia
, the Far East
, Japan
and North America
.
The wingspan
is 9-10 mm. Adults are on wing in September, and overwinter, appearing again in the spring.
The larvae feed on Betula pendula, Betula pubescens, Chaenomeles japonica
, Cotoneaster integerrimus
, Crategus monogyna, Cydonia oblonga, Mespilus germanica, Prunus armeniaca, Prunus cerasifera, Prunus dulcis, Prunus mahaleb
, Prunus persica, Prunus spinosa
, Pyrus communis and Sorbus
species. They mine
the leaves of their host plant. Eggs are deposited in the underside of a leaf. Around the oviposition site a cavity develops, that in the end often leaves a hole in the leaf. Then, the mine becomes a norrow, hardly widening, winding corridor, largely filled with a broad reddish-brown frass
line. The corridor then widens into a wide, full depth blotch, often against the leaf margin. The larva may leave its mine and start a new one, sometimes on a different leaf.
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...
in the Lyonetiidae
Lyonetiidae
Lyonetiidae is a family of moths. These are small, slender moths, the wingspan rarely exceeding 1 cm. The very narrow forewings, held folded backwards covering the hindwings and abdomen, often have pointed apices noticeably up- or down-turned. The larvae are leaf miners.The families Bucculatricidae...
family. It is found in most of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, except Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
, and the Mediterranean Islands. It was considered extinct in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, but has recently been recorded. It is also known from Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
, south-eastern Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
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 9-10 mm. Adults are on wing in September, and overwinter, appearing again in the spring.
The larvae feed on Betula pendula, Betula pubescens, Chaenomeles japonica
Chaenomeles japonica
Chaenomeles japonica is a species of Japanese Quince. It is a thorny deciduous shrub that is commonly cultivated. It is shorter than another commonly cultivated species C. speciosa, growing to only about 1 m in height. The fruit is called in Japanese. It is best known for its colorful spring...
, Cotoneaster integerrimus
Cotoneaster integerrimus
Cotoneaster integerrimus is a species of Cotoneaster native to central and eastern Europe and southwest Asia, from southern Belgium and eastern France south to Italy, and east through Germany to the Balkans, northern Turkey, the Crimea, the Caucasus and northern Iran; plants in Spain may also...
, Crategus monogyna, Cydonia oblonga, Mespilus germanica, Prunus armeniaca, Prunus cerasifera, Prunus dulcis, Prunus mahaleb
Prunus mahaleb
Prunus mahaleb is a species of cherry native to central and southern Europe, western and central Asia, and northwest Africa, from Morocco north to France, southern Belgium, and Germany, and east to northern Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan.It is a deciduous tree or large...
, Prunus persica, Prunus spinosa
Prunus spinosa
Prunus spinosa is a species of Prunus native to Europe, western Asia, and locally in northwest Africa. It is also locally naturalised in New Zealand and eastern North America....
, Pyrus communis and Sorbus
Sorbus
Sorbus is a genus of about 100–200 species of trees and shrubs in the subfamily Maloideae of the Rose family Rosaceae. Species of Sorbus are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan, service tree, and mountain ash...
species. 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. Eggs are deposited in the underside of a leaf. Around the oviposition site a cavity develops, that in the end often leaves a hole in the leaf. Then, the mine becomes a norrow, hardly widening, winding corridor, largely filled with a broad reddish-brown 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...
line. The corridor then widens into a wide, full depth blotch, often against the leaf margin. The larva may leave its mine and start a new one, sometimes on a different leaf.
Subspecies
- Lyonetia prunifoliella prunifoliella
- Lyonetia prunifoliella malinella (Matsumura, 1907) (Japan)