Phyllonorycter celtisella
Encyclopedia
Phyllonorycter celtisella is a moth
of the Gracillariidae
family. It is known from Ontario
and the United States
(including Connecticut, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio and Texas).
The larva
e feed on Celtis species, including Celtis occidentalis
. They mine
the leaves of their host plant. The mine has the form of a blotch mine on the upperside of the leaf. The larva, of the cylindrical type in the later stages, enters the leaf on the lower surface, and makes a narrow linear mine, then cuts through the parenchyma to the upper side, where the mine broadens into an elongate blotch, made tent-like by a longitudinal ridge in each epidermis. The larvae eat the entire parenchyma, leaving merely the dark discoloured cuticles of the 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...
of the Gracillariidae
Gracillariidae
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....
family. It is known from Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(including Connecticut, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio and Texas).
The larva
Larva
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...
e feed on Celtis species, including Celtis occidentalis
Celtis occidentalis
Celtis occidentalis, commonly known as the Common hackberry, is a medium-size deciduous tree native to North America. It is also known as the nettletree, beaverwood, northern hackberry, and American hackberry...
. 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. The mine has the form of a blotch mine on the upperside of the leaf. The larva, of the cylindrical type in the later stages, enters the leaf on the lower surface, and makes a narrow linear mine, then cuts through the parenchyma to the upper side, where the mine broadens into an elongate blotch, made tent-like by a longitudinal ridge in each epidermis. The larvae eat the entire parenchyma, leaving merely the dark discoloured cuticles of the leaf.