Moths of North Carolina
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89 NC Records

Cydia caryana (Fitch, 1856) - Hickory Shuckworm Moth

Cydia caryanaCydia caryanaCydia caryana
Taxonomy
Superfamily: Tortricoidea Family: TortricidaeSubfamily: OlethreutinaeTribe: GrapholitiniP3 Number: 51a1357 MONA Number: 3471.00
Comments: Cydia is a large genus with over 200 described species that occur worldwide, and with around 50 species in North America. Several species are important economic pests that often feed on fruits and seeds.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1923); Gilligan and Epstein (TortAI)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Payne and Heaton (1975)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The following description is based in part on that of Forbes (1923). The palps are dull whitish and the head, antennae, and thorax are grayish brown to brown. The forewing ground varies from medium or dark brown to nearly black, and has pale-tipped scales that produce a lightly dusted appearance. The costa has a series of rather poorly developed yellowish-white to whitish strigulae that alternate with darker markings and that are most prominent on the apical half. The costa has three or four bluish-metallic or lead-colored lines that lead from these, the most prominent being one that begins just beyond the middle of the costa and extends towards the ocellus, and a second that is at around three-fourths and extends towards the apical third of the termen. The ocellus is inconspicuous and has a lead-colored vertical bar on both the anterior and posterior margins, along with four or five horizontal black bars that are often missing or poorly expressed. The fringe is silvery white to leaden-colored with a dark basal line along the termen. The hindwing is whitish on the basal half and fuscous on the remainder, with a silvery-white fringe and a fuscous basal line. Cydia caryana can be separated from our other Cydia by the combination of a dark brown to black forewing and a white patch on the hindwing.
Wingspan: 10-12 mm (Forbes, 1923)
Forewing Length: 5.0-7.0 mm (Gilligan et al., 2008)
Adult Structural Features: Males have a row of black sex scales on the anal margin of the hindwing and lack a forewing costal fold. Gilligan et al. (2008) and Gilligan and Epstein (TortAI) have images of the male and female genitalia and note that the aedeagus is slender and forked, while the sterigma of females is semi-rectangular with the length more than twice the width.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The larvae feed on the husks and nuts of walnuts and native hickories, and can have 2-5 generations per year. They commonly attack pecans where they can become a significant pest, and much of the life history work has focused on pecans because of their commercial value (Payne and Heaton, 1975). The following is a brief summary that was provided by Wells (2014) for pecans. The adults that emerge in the spring prior to nut formation lay their eggs either on pecan foliage, on the wart-like galls of pecan Phylloxera, or the nuts of early developing hickories. The larvae that hatch on leaves rarely survive to complete their life cycle, while those from eggs laid on galls or hickory nuts are able to complete their life cycle and perpetuate the population until nut formation begins on the pecans. During the summer months the females begin to deposit their eggs on the nuts and the local population size usually increases with each succeeding generation. The larvae tunnel into the developing nuts of the host plant, and later into the husks as the season progresses. Feeding can cause the fruits to fall prematurely or result in poor kernel development, shuck sticking, scarring and discoloration of the shell, and delayed nut maturity. The pupae overwinter in husks either on the ground or in the treetops in fruits that did not fall. Late instar larvae are approximately 10 mm in length with a pale abdomen. The head and prothoracic shield are yellow brown and an anal comb is absent (Gilligan and Epstein, TortAI).
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Cydia caryana occurs throughout much of the eastern US and in adjoining areas of Ontario and Quebec. The range in the US extends from southern Maine to southern Florida, and westward to central Texas, central Oklahoma, Missouri, Illinois, and Wisconsin. This species occurs statewide in North Carolina.
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: Local population can have 2-5 broods per year and the adults have been found from January through November in different areas of the range. In most regions that fly from March or April through September. As of 2022, our records extend from late-March through mid-September.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Our records come mainly from residential areas. Natural habitats include rich, wet hardwood forests and montane mesic hardwoods but also include barrier islands and streamheads in the Sandhills, which would indicate that Mockernut or other hickory species may be used.
Larval Host Plants: The larvae feed on members of the Juglandaceae as well as Phylloxera leaf galls (Forbes, 1923; Heinrich, 1923; Moznette et al., 1940; Prentice, 1966; Payne and Heaton, 1975; Dinkins and Reid, 1988; Eikenbary et al., 1991; Lam et al., 2011; Gilligan and Epstein, 2014; Brown, 2022). The known hosts include Pecan (Carya illinoiensis), Shagbark Hickory (C. ovata) and Black Walnut (Juglans nigra). It is very likely that other native hickories such as Mockernut Hickory are also used, but this needs to be verified. - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights and the larvae can be found in pecan fruits and other hosts during the summer months.
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Oak-Hickory Forests
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR S3S4
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments: This species occurs statewide and appears to be relatively secure.

 Photo Gallery for Cydia caryana - Hickory Shuckworm Moth

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

Recorded by: John Petranka on 2024-06-20
Watauga Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik on 2024-05-12
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2024-04-29
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik, Rich Teper on 2024-04-17
New Hanover Co.
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Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2024-04-01
Chatham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2024-03-28
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: Stephen Dunn on 2023-07-02
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Stephen Dunn on 2023-07-02
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-06-25
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-06-03
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Stephen Dunn on 2023-05-31
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Stephen Dunn on 2023-05-31
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: John Petranka on 2023-05-25
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2023-05-21
Mecklenburg Co.
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Recorded by: Stephen Dunn on 2023-05-17
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-04-19
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-04-13
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: John Petranka on 2023-04-12
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Erich Hofmann on 2023-03-27
New Hanover Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Dean Furbish and Joy Wiggins on 2023-03-24
Wake Co.
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Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2022-09-01
Wake Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka, Steve Hall and Bo Sullivan on 2022-08-28
Scotland Co.
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Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2022-08-24
Clay Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2022-08-05
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2022-08-05
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2022-08-02
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: David George, L. M. Carlson on 2022-07-30
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George, Lior Carlson, Becky Watkins, Richard Teper, Stephen Dunn on 2022-07-23
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-07-18
Guilford Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Gary Maness on 2022-07-04
Guilford Co.
Comment: