Moths of North Carolina
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Grapholita Members:
2 NC Records

Grapholita fana (Kearfott, 1907) - No Common Name

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Tortricoidea Family: TortricidaeSubfamily: OlethreutinaeTribe: GrapholitiniP3 Number: 621313.00 MONA Number: 3434.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Kearfott (1907)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The following is based on the description by Kearfott (1907). The head, thorax, and antennae are grayish to grayish-blue, while the palps are yellowish-white with the outer joint darker. The forewing ground is grayish to grayish-blue on the basal half and golden-brown on the apical half. A large white patch is present in the middle of dorsal margin that is usually divided by a thin brown line. The ocellus is large and fills the outer fourth of the wing from near the anal angle to above the middle. It consists of 4-5 horizontal black dashes on a golden-brown ground, and has vertical side bars that are shining silvery to silvery-blue. The inner bar is double the width of the outer bar. The costa has a series of around eight broad, oblique, white streaks that are divided by dark brown. In three of these the streaks continue inward as pale metallic-blue lines. The most anterior line arises at around one-third and curves inward to the white dorsal patch, while a line that arises from the third white streak curves inward and connects to the inner vertical bar on the ocellus. Beyond this is a third line that projects towards the outer bar of the ocellus. The extreme edge of the termen is brown, and the fringe is shining leaden to light brown with a white cut just below the apex. The hindwing is bronzy-brown and shades to grayish-brown at the base. Grapholita interstinctana is similar, but both the ocellus and metallic-blue lines are poorly developed relative to those of G. fana.
Wingspan: 7.5-10 mm (Kearfott, 1907)
Forewing Length: 4.0-5.0 mm (Gilligan et al., 2008)
Adult Structural Features: Gilligan et al. (2008) have illustrations of the male and female genitalia and note that the males are distinctive in having a valval neck that is weakly constricted, and a narrow flange that extends along the distal margin of the cucullus from the apex to the anal angle. In females the ductus bursae is sclerotinized anterior to the sterigma.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The larvae have been reported to feed on the buds and flowers of tick-trefoils (Desmodium; Heinrich, 1926). They also fold and bind the young leaves of Desmodium and skeletonized the leaf tissue (BugGuide).
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from close inspection of specimens or by DNA analysis.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Grapholita fana is largely restricted to the eastern US where the range extends from Maine westward across the Great Lakes region (including Ontario) to Minnesota, Iowa, and Missouri, and southward to Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, Georgia, and South Carolina. As of 2022, we have a single record from Jones County near the coast.
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 April through August in different areas of the range, with a seasonal peak in May through July. As of 2022, our one record is from late July.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Local populations have been found in prairies, forest edges, fields, and other open habitats that support tick-trefoils.
Larval Host Plants: The only known hosts are tick-trefoils (Desmodium spp.; Heinrich 1926; Miller 1987), including Showy Tick-trefoil (D. canadense). - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights. We need information on host use in North Carolina.
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Leguminous Forb and Shrublands
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR S1S3
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments: Despite its use of common host plants, this species is seemingly rare in the state. Additional information is needed on its distribution and abundance before we can accurately assess its conservation status.

 Photo Gallery for Grapholita fana - No common name

Photos: 3

Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-02
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-02
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: J.B. Sullivan on 2020-07-27
Jones Co.
Comment: