Moths of North Carolina

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View PDF	Tortricidae Members:	Dichrorampha Members:	19 NC Records

Dichrorampha bittana (Busck, 1906) - No Common Name

Taxonomy

Superfamily:
Tortricoidea

Family:
Tortricidae

Subfamily:
Olethreutinae

Tribe:
Grapholitini

P3 Number:
51a1276

MONA Number:
3406.00

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions: Beadle and Leckie (2012)

Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD

Technical Description, Adults: Forbes (1923)

Technical Description, Immature Stages: MacKay (1959)

Adult Markings: This species varies substantially in coloration and patterning. Some individuals are light golden yellow throughout, while others are heavily suffused with brown that can cover the basal half or so of the forewing or much of the entire wing. Most specimens have a yellowish dorsal patch near the middle of the inner margin that can vary markedly in size from a small mark to a more extensive area of yellow that extends to the termen. Individuals that are most golden yellow throughout often have black striations on the veins in the middle of the wing, but these are masked in heavily dusted individuals. A poorly formed yellowish-brown ocellus with a series of three short horizontal dashes is usually evident near the middle of the wing at around three-fourths, along with four terminal dots that are near the middle of the termen. The costal has several whitish strigulae that are often poorly expressed on the apical third, along with two narrow lead-colored striations that project towards the termen and have orangish colored striations on either side of them. The fringe is brown with a lighter whitish central band. The hindwing is grayish brown with the fringe pattern similar to that of the forewing. Certain forms of Dichrorampha bittana can closely resemble specimens of D. simulana and may require using the genitalia, which are distinctive (Miller, 1987; Gilligan et al., 2008).

Wingspan: 12-15 mm (Forbes, 1923)

Forewing Length: 5.0 to 6.5 mm (Miller, 1987)

Adult Structural Features: Miller (1987) and Gilligan et al. (2008) have illustrations of the male and female genitalia and note that the males have a preapical spur on the aedeagus -- as well as a tongue-like projection on the basal excavation of the valva -- that will distinguished them from D. simulana.

Genitalia and other structural photos

Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.

Immatures and Development: The larvae have been reported to be root borers on asters (McDunnough, 1946; Putnam, 1942), but details of the larval life history have not been reported.

Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable only through rearing to adulthood.

Distribution in North Carolina

Distribution: Dichrorampha bittana is largely restricted to temperate regions of eastern North America. The range extends from Nova Scotia and Maine westward through Quebec, Ontario, and the Great Lakes region to Minnesota, and southward to Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina. Pohl et al. (2018) also list records for Alberta and Saskatchewan. As of 2022, our records are all from the Blue Ridge.

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: The adults fly from May through September in different areas of the range. As of 2022, we have records from late May through early September. Our records provide limited evidence of populations being bivoltine, with the first brood in May and June and a second brood in August and September.

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: Specimens in North Carolina have mostly been found deciduous forests or forest edge habitats.

Larval Host Plants: The hosts are poorly documented, but evidence suggests that they may be stem and root borers of Symphyotrichum (McDunnough, 1946, Putnam, 1942) and other composites such as Hoary Tansyaster (Dieteria canescens) in western Canada (Robinson et al., 2010). - View

Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights.

Wikipedia

Status in North Carolina

Natural Heritage Program Status:

Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR [S2-S3]

State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.

Comments: This species appears to reach its southern limits in western North Carolina and is uncommon in the region. We need additional information on its host use, habitat requirements, distribution and abundance before we can accurately assess its conservation status.

Photo Gallery for Dichrorampha bittana - None

31 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.

	Recorded by: Jim Petranka, Becky Elkin and Marilyn Westphal. on 2025-09-05 Henderson Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Merrill Lynch on 2025-08-14 Watauga Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Merrill Lynch on 2025-08-14 Watauga Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Merrill Lynch on 2025-08-14 Watauga Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2025-07-29 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Mark Basinger on 2025-05-18 Madison Co. Comment: dissected.
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-27 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-27 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2023-09-05 Buncombe Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2023-09-05 Buncombe Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-06-06 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-06-06 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: tom ward on 2022-09-01 Buncombe Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-08-15 Avery Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-08-15 Avery Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-06-14 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-06-14 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-06-04 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-06-04 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: tom ward on 2022-05-27 Buncombe Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: tom ward on 2022-05-27 Buncombe Co. Comment:		Recorded by: tom ward on 2021-06-12 Buncombe Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2020-09-07 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2020-09-07 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2019-05-24 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2018-06-12 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2018-06-12 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: B. Bockhahn, P. Scharf, K. Kittelberger on 2015-06-18 Avery Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: B. Bockhahn, P. Scharf, K. Kittelberger on 2015-06-18 Avery Co. Comment:		Recorded by: B. Bockhahn, P. Scharf, K. Kittelberger on 2015-06-18 Avery Co. Comment: