Moths of North Carolina
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Euhyponomeutoides Members:
7 NC Records

Euhyponomeutoides gracilariella (Busck, 1904) - No Common Name

Euhyponomeutoides gracilariellaEuhyponomeutoides gracilariellaEuhyponomeutoides gracilariellaEuhyponomeutoides gracilariella
Taxonomy
Family: YponomeutidaeP3 Number: 36a0136 MONA Number: 2426.00
Comments: Euhyponomeutoides is a small genus of moths that includes both North American and Eurasian species. Only one species is known from North America.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult Markings: This species is larger than most of our micromoths with forewings that vary from 7-9.5 mm. The following description is based in part on those by Busck (1904) and Powell and Opler (2009). The overall body form resembles that of a Caloptilia, with individuals having elongated, narrow wings. The forewing is buckled near the middle to form an elongated, rounded ridge that extends along much of the length of the wing. The ground color varies from rusty red to a more subdued reddish brown or coppery brown and has varying levels of dark scaling. This can vary form almost none to more extensive dark scaling that tends to form broken lines in the subcostal and subdorsal regions. The head tuft varies from yellowish brown to dirty yellow and tends to be lighter colored than the general ground color of the forewing. The labial palps are heavily dusted with black scales on the outside and the antenna is light gray with narrow black annulations. The legs are often heavily dusted above with dark scales, particularly on the forelegs.
Forewing Length: 7-9.5 mm (Powell and Opler, 2009)
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: As of 2022, our one observation for this species was at Mount Mitchell where larvae were observed feeding on a Ribes (gooseberry). The older larvae rested and appeared to skeletonized leaf tissue beneath a loosely organized protective sheet of silk. Young instars were greenish white, while older instars were light translucent green with yellowish-green to greenish head capsules. Late-instar larvae that Jim Petranka collected at Mt. Mitchell produced adults about a month after they were collected, which suggests a brief pupal stage in the wild.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: As currently recognized, Euhyponomeutoides gracilariella is a wide-ranging species that occurs across much of southern Canada from British Columbia to Nova Scotia. In the US, populations have been found from southern Alaska southward to northwestern California, in the Rocky Mountains southward to Colorado, and in Maine and Minnesota. Two populations were recently discovered at Mount Mitchell at approximately 6,500' in elevation, and at a second lower-elevation site in Swain Co. The southern Appalachian populations appear to constitute an extreme southern disjunct from other eastern populations in Maine and Minnesota.
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Immature Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Flight Comments: The flight season is poorly documented for regional populations, with records extending from March through August across the range of the species. On two occasions Jim Petranka reared adults from larvae on Ribes at Mt. Mitchell that eclosed in mid-September about a month after the larvae were collected, while one adult was collected in late July at a lower-elevation site in Swain Co.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Local populations are dependent on Ribes as hosts and appear to favor northern or high-elevation sites with the host plants.
Larval Host Plants: Our one record as of 2022 is from a high-elevation site at Mt. Mitchell where larvae were feeding on an undetermined Ribes species. - View
Observation Methods: The adults do not appear to be attracted to lights and most records are based of rearing adults from larvae on gooseberries.
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for Gooseberry Thickets
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status: [SR]
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR S1
State Protection:
Comments: This is an apparently rare species in North Carolina that as of 2022 is only known from one very high-elevation site at Mount Mitchell. As with the two species of Entephria, it appears to be an extreme disjunct and is highly likely to be a relict from a much wider Pleistocene distribution. As such, it may be highly vulnerable to the warming and drying effects of climate change.

 Photo Gallery for Euhyponomeutoides gracilariella - No common name

Photos: 13

Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-09-20
Yancey Co.
Comment: A reared adult from a Ribes sp.; larvae collected on Aug. 21 and three adults emerged on Sept 20, 2023. 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2023-08-21
Yancey Co.
Comment: One of several larvae that were feeding on a Ribes; larvae collected on Aug. 21 and three adults emerged on Sept 20, 2023 (see companion photo of an adult).
Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik, Rich Teper, Becky Watkins on 2023-07-29
Swain Co.
Comment: Specimen was taken at a lower elevation site (2,300-2,700') in a densely wooded mesic slope. No Ribes were observed on site.		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-09-14
Yancey Co.
Comment: A reared adult from Ribes (see companion photo of the larvae from 2022-08-17).
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-09-14
Yancey Co.
Comment: A reared adult from Ribes (see companion photo of the larvae from 2022-08-17). 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-09-14
Yancey Co.
Comment: A reared adult from Ribes (see companion photo of the larvae from 2022-08-17).
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-09-14
Yancey Co.
Comment: A reared adult from Ribes (see companion photo of the larvae from 2022-08-17). 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-09-14
Yancey Co.
Comment: A reared adult from Ribes (see companion photo of the larvae from 2022-08-17).
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-09-14
Yancey Co.
Comment: A reared adult from Ribes (see companion photo of the larvae from 2022-08-17). 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-08-17
Yancey Co.
Comment: Larvae were common on a Ribes sp.; early instars were light greenish white; older ones greenish; larvae fed beneath webbing where they skeletonized leaves. Four adults were reared and emerged on Sept. 14-15, 2022 (see companion photos).
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-08-17
Yancey Co.
Comment: Larvae were common on a Ribes sp.; early instars were light greenish white; older ones greenish; larvae fed beneath webbing where they skeletonized leaves. Four adults were reared and emerged on Sept. 14-15, 2022 (see companion photos). 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-08-17
Yancey Co.
Comment: A larva that was feeding on Ribes beneath a webbed shelter.
Recorded by: B. Scholtens and T. Smith on 2006-08-13
Swain Co.
Comment: BOLD specimen MNAA720-07; Creative Commons attributr.