Phyllonorycter heegeriella
Encyclopedia
Phyllonorycter heegeriella is a moth
of the Gracillariidae
family. It is found in all of Europe
, except the Iberian Peninsula
and the Balkan Peninsula.
The wingspan
is 6,5-8,5 mm. Adults are on wing in May and August in two generations in western Europe.
The larva
e feed on Quercus petraea and Quercus robur. They mine
the leaves of their host plant. They create a very small lower-surface, tentiform mine. The mine is usually situated near the leaf margin or in a leaf lobe. Mines of the summer generation have one fold, those of the fall generation have a large number of fine wrinkles. The pupa is made in a cocoon. The summer cocoon is small and white and fastened to both the floor and the ceiling of the mine. The cocoon made by the autumn generation is larger, yet more delicate, and is completely free of frass
.
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 found in all 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 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 Balkan Peninsula.
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 6,5-8,5 mm. Adults are on wing in May and August in two generations in western Europe.
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 Quercus petraea and Quercus robur. 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. They create a very small lower-surface, tentiform mine. The mine is usually situated near the leaf margin or in a leaf lobe. Mines of the summer generation have one fold, those of the fall generation have a large number of fine wrinkles. The pupa is made in a cocoon. The summer cocoon is small and white and fastened to both the floor and the ceiling of the mine. The cocoon made by the autumn generation is larger, yet more delicate, and is completely free of 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...
.