Moths of North Carolina
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Pelochrista Members:
12 NC Records

Pelochrista quinquemaculana (Robinson, 1869) - Five-spotted Pelochrista

Pelochrista quinquemaculanaPelochrista quinquemaculanaPelochrista quinquemaculana
Taxonomy
Superfamily: Tortricoidea Family: TortricidaeSubfamily: OlethreutinaeTribe: EucosminiP3 Number: 51a1022.1 MONA Number: 3008.00 MONA Synonym: Eucosma quinquemaculana
Comments: Pelochrista is a large Holarctic genus of tortricids with around 75% of the 226 described species being native to North America (Wright and Gilligan, 2017). The highest species richness occurs in the western half of North America. The genus has a long and confusing taxonomic history, with many of the species formerly placed in the genus Eucosma. Gilligan et al. (2014) conducted a comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of Pelochrista, Eucosma, and related genera and redefined the genus Eucosma and Pelochrista based on differences in female genitalia. The great majority of Pelochrista species are known only from adults, which likely reflects the fact that the larvae of most species bore into stem bases and roots and are concealed from view. Members of the Asteraceae are the likely hosts for most species (Wright and Gilligan, 2017), but much work need to be done to identifying the hosts.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Wright and Gilligan (2017)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: This is a boldly marked and distinctive species. The head, palps, and thorax are medium brown. The forewing is also medium brown -- but sometimes with fine darker striations -- and has several bold white marks (Wright and Gilligan, 2017). A small round white spot is present at the base that is followed by a broad white sub-basal band that extends from the inner margin to the costa. The band is widest in the middle and has a prominent bulge on the posterior half. Three large white spots are present in the postmedian area. One is a subapical spot on the costa, and the other two a pair (one costal and one dorsally in the position of the ocellus) at around three-fourths. We have one specimen in which the two costal spots are fused. The hindwing is brown with a paler fringe.

This species somewhat resembles P. robinsonana but the latter has a whitish head, a thorax with a median white streak, a smaller whlte basal spot, two transverse white bands in the proximal half of the wing (instead of just one), and a white spot with pinkish transverse bars in the position of the ocellus (Wright and Gilligan, 2017).
Wingspan: 6.1-9.8 mm; mean 8.5 mm (Wright and Gilligan, 2017)
Adult Structural Features: Wright and Gilligan (2017) provide detailed illustrations of the male and female genitalia, along with the following descriptions of the genitalia. In males, the uncus is broad (basal width about 2 x the height) and weakly differentiated from the dorsolateral shoulders of the tegumen. The socii are fingerlike and taper distally, and the vesica lacks cornuti. The costal margin of the valva is nearly straight, the neck is not differentiated from the rest of the valva, and the saccular corner is often weakly defined. The cucullus is a short rounded extension of the neck that lacks dorsal and ventral lobes. It has course setation on the medial surface, a stout anal spine, and 1-2 marginal spines.

In females, the papillae anales are flat, moderately setose, and triangular, with a conspicuous dorsal protrusion supporting several long hairlike setae at the base of the apophyses posteriores. The sterigma is Type III ( see Wright and Gilligan, 2017). The lamella postvaginalis is rectangular (length about 2 x the width) and microtrichiate, with the posterior margin medially indented. The posterior margin of sternite 7 has a medial triangular projection that shields the ostium. The ductus bursae lacks sclerotization, and the corpus bursae has two signa -- one near the juncture with the ductus bursae that is surrounded by a contorted/ wrinkled membrane -- and the other in the anterior half of the bursa.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Pelochrista quinquemaculana is primarily found in the southeastern Coastal Plain and Piedmont. The main range extends from southern Louisiana eastward through the Gulf Coast states to Florida, then northward through the Atlantic Coast states to New Jersey and New York. Isolated populations also occur in east-central Kentucky. As of 2022, all of our records are from the Coastal Plain, except for one historical record from Polk County in the Piedmont.
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
Flight Comments: Populations appear to be univoltine, with most adult flying from August through mid-November. Specimens have also been collected in Florida in February and April. As of 2022, out records are from early September through mid-October.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Almost all of our records are from xeric habitats that support pines and a diverse herbaceous ground layer.
Larval Host Plants: The host are undocumented. - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights, but perhaps only weakly so given that there are surprisingly few records across the range of this species.
Wikipedia
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 is an apparently uncommon species both in North Carolina and throughout its range.

 Photo Gallery for Pelochrista quinquemaculana - Five-spotted Pelochrista

Photos: 5

Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-10-06
Brunswick Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-10-06
Brunswick Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Shields on 2019-10-12
Pender Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: B. Bockhahn on 2018-10-04
Dare Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Kyle Kittelberger, Paul Scharf on 2014-10-11
Dare Co.
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