Moths of North Carolina
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
 Family (Alpha):
« Home »
View PDFTortricidae Members: Olethreutes Members: 16 NC Records

Olethreutes osmundana (Fernald, 1879) - Fern Olethreutes

Olethreutes osmundana
view caption 		Olethreutes osmundanaOlethreutes osmundanaOlethreutes osmundana
view caption
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Tortricoidea		 Family:
Tortricidae		Subfamily:
Olethreutinae		Tribe:
Olethreutini		P3 Number:
51a0597		 MONA Number:
2829.00
Comments: Olethreutes is a large genus with over 130 recognized species worldwide. North America has around 80 recognized species, with at least 37 species occurring in North Carolina. Some species are very difficult to identify due to interspecific similarities in color and forewing pattern and only subtle differences in genitalia (Gilligan et al., 2008). In many instances, knowledge of the host plant is essential for a confident determination. All of the Nearctic species are leaf-tiers or leaf-rollers on deciduous trees and shrubs.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Immature Stages: Eiseman and Feldman (2024)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: This species is distinctive in having an overall brownish to reddish-brown color, with a large central orangish patch with a thin margin of paler scales. The patch extends from the inner margin to just before the costa and takes up much of the area of the central portion of the wing. The head, thorax, and areas of the forewing other than the large patch have a mixture or orangish-red, dark-brown and leaden scales. A dark, subtornal patch and postmedial bar may or may not be present.
Forewing Length: 5.0-6.5 mm (Gilligan et al., 2008).
Adult Structural Features: Gilligan et al. (2008) has illustrations of the male and female genitalia.
Structural photos
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The early instars initially mine the leaves of ferns and there can be more than one mine on a leaflet. Mines that were observed by Eiseman and Feldman (2024) on a Royal Fern in North Carolina were small and more or less elongated, and bounded by the leaf venation. The youngest mines had silk spun outside of them on the lower leaf surface. Frass was initially deposited outside of the mine entrance, then entirely within the mines as larvae matured. One older larva produced a frass-lined channel that cut across the veins, with digitate extensions to either side that were bounded by the veins. The older instars abandon the mines and tie leaflets together, then window feed on the plant tissues. Each larva constructs a silken tunnel that formed a retreat from which it makes feeding forays (Eiseman and Feldman, 2024). Pupation apparently occurs either within the leaf tie or in a folded fern leaflet.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Olethreutes osmundana is widely distributed across eastern North America. The range includes portions of southern Canada (Quebec; New Brunswick; Nova Scotia), and much of the eastern US from Maine and other New England states southward along the Atlantic Seaboard to southern Florida, and westward to southeastern Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin. This species occurs in all three physiographic provinces in North Carolina, but is most common in the Coastal Plain.
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Olethreutes osmundanaAlamance Alexander Alleghany Anson Ashe Avery Beaufort Bertie Bladen Brunswick Buncombe Burke Cabarrus Caldwell Camden Carteret Caswell Catawba Chatham Cherokee Chowan Clay Cleveland Columbus Craven Cumberland Currituck Dare Davidson Davie Duplin Durham Edgecombe Forsyth Franklin Gaston Gates Graham Granville Greene Guilford Halifax Harnett Haywood Henderson Hertford Hoke Hyde Iredell Jackson Johnston Jones Lee Lenoir Lincoln Macon Madison Martin McDowell Mecklenburg Mitchell Montgomery Moore Nash New%20Hanover Northampton Onslow Orange Pamlico Pasquotank Pender Perquimans Person Pitt Polk Randolph Richmond Robeson Rockingham Rowan Rutherford Sampson Scotland Stanly Stokes Surry Swain Transylvania Tyrrell Union Vance Wake Warren Washington Watauga Wayne Wilkes Wilson Yadkin Yancey
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge 		Image showing flight dates by month for High Mountains greater than 4,000 feet, Low Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain: adults.
Immature Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge 		Image showing flight dates by month for High Mountains greater than 4,000 feet, Low Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain: immatures.
Flight Comments: The adults have been observed from March through November in different areas of the range, with populations in Florida and Alabama having a much longer flight period than those farther north, where individuals mostly fly from May through August. As of 2024, our records range from early-June through late-September.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Local populations are generally associated with moist or wet grounds where the host plants grow in abundance.
Larval Host Plants: The larvae specialize on ferns, including members of the Dennstaedtiaceae and Osmundaceae (Fernald, 1879; Heinrich, 1926; Eiseman and Feldman, 2024). The known hosts including Royal Fern (Osmunda spectabilis), Cinnamon Fern (Osmundastrum cinnamomeum) and Eastern Bracken Fern (Pteridium latiusculum = P. aquilinum). A Kearfott record on Ambrosia (ragweed) seeds reported by Heinrich (1926) is likely incorrect (Gilligan et al., 2008). In North Carolina, the only confirmed host is Royal Fern. - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights. More information is needed on the larval life history and host plant use in North Carolina.
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Fernlands
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR [S2S3]
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments: This species is spottily distributed in North Carolina where local populations depend on ferns as hosts.

 Photo Gallery for Olethreutes osmundana - Fern Olethreutes

Photos: 8
Olethreutes osmundanaRecorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George, Larry Chen, Sarah Toner, Joye Zhou on 2025-06-20
Richmond Co.
Comment: 		Olethreutes osmundanaRecorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik, Rich Teper, Becky Watkins on 2023-07-29
Swain Co.
Comment:
Olethreutes osmundanaRecorded by: Jim Petranka and John Petranka on 2023-06-14
Richmond Co.
Comment: 		Olethreutes osmundanaRecorded by: Tracy Feldman on 2022-07-20
Camden Co.
Comment:
Olethreutes osmundanaRecorded by: Tracy Feldman on 2022-07-20
Camden Co.
Comment: 		Olethreutes osmundanaRecorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2022-06-30
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Olethreutes osmundanaRecorded by: Steve Taylor on 2021-07-20
Beaufort Co.
Comment: 		Olethreutes osmundanaRecorded by: Mark Shields on 2019-06-29
Onslow Co.
Comment: