Moths of North Carolina
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
 Family (Alpha):
« »
View PDFTortricidae Members:
Acleris Members:
20 NC Records

Acleris nivisellana (Walsingham, 1879) - Snowy-shouldered Acleris Moth

Taxonomy
Superfamily: Tortricoidea Family: TortricidaeSubfamily: TortricinaeTribe: TortriciniP3 Number: 620010.00 MONA Number: 3510.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Immature Stages: Chapman and Lienk (1971)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: This is one of our most distinctly marked Acleris. The palps are yellowish-brown and the head dark-brown to black. The thorax and apical half of the forewing are contrastingly snowy-white, with the latter having the white ground overlain with grayish mottling and vermiculations. A conspicuous chestnut-brown scale tuft that is followed by patches of black scales is present below the inner margin at around one-third the wing length, while a line of dark, raised scales is present on the distal third of the wing. A dark-brown triangular patch that terminates near the center of the wing is present just beyond the midwing. The triangular mark has patches of dark brown and silvery-blue scales on the posterior margin, and the region between it and the inner margin is filled with varying amounts of a creamy-coffee wash and similar-colored raised scale patches on a white background. Beyond the triangular patch and coffee wash is a region with a mottled mix of white, chestnut-brown and darker-brown scales that extends to the outer margin. The fringe is dark-brown with a slightly darker basal line, while the hindwing is light brown with a slightly lighter fringe.
Forewing Length: 6.0-7.5 mm (Gilligan and Epstein, 2014).
Adult Structural Features: Gilligan and Epstein (2014) provide illustrations of the male and female genitalia.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: Chapman and Lienk (1971) studied the life history of populations that fed on apples in New York. At their sites the larvae typically feed individually on the lower surfaces of leaves. Each larva skeletonizes an area along the midrib from beneath a silken chamber that is constructed over the feeding site. The larva then partially cuts the midrib and partially folds over the leaf and binds it with silk. This results in a characteristic twisted appearance that likely is due to the young leaf being unable to expand normally as it grows. In New York, moths from the first generation are on the wing after mid-August and appear to give rise to larvae that overwinter, then resume feeding in the spring. The mid- to late instar larvae are about 9-16 mm long. The abdominal color varies, while the head is brown to dark brown posteriorly and dark brown to black anteriorly. The prothoracic shield has a large postero-lateral black spot on each side, but is otherwise concolorous with the abdomen (Chapman and Lienk, 1971; Gilligan and Epstein, 2014).
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Acleris nivisellana is widely distributed across southern Canada (British Columbia eastward to Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island), and in the cooler climatic regions of the U.S., including Washington, Oregon, central and northern California, Colorado, Wyoming, western Nebraska and portions of the eastern U.S. In the East the range extends from Maine southwestward to western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee, and westward to eastern Kentucky, Illinois, eastern Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota and northeastern North Dakota. As of 2024, most of our records are from lower-elevation sites in the Blue Ridge, with one record from 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: The adults of this wide-ranging species have been found during every month of the year except December, with most populations probably having one or two broods per year depending on the latitude and length of the growing season. Populations in North Carolina have a seasonal peak in March and April that is followed by a second adult emergence in June and July. Larvae from the second brood presumably overwinter and resume growth in late-winter as suggested by Chapman and Lienk (1971), with the adults emerging in March and April.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: This species occurs in apple orchards and often in partially sunny, mesic habitats that support the host species.
Larval Host Plants: Larvae feed on members of the Rosaceae (Forbes, 1923; McDunnough, 1934; Schaffner, 1959; Powell, 1964; Prentice, 1966; Chapman and Lienk, 1971; Ferguson, 1975; Brown et al., 2008; Gilligan and Epstein, 2014). The reported hosts include hawthorns (Crataegus), Common Apple (Malus domestica), Mallow Ninebark (Physocarpus malvaceus), Fire Cherry (Prunus pensylvanica) and Greene's Mountain-Ash (Sorbus scopulina). As of 2024, we do not have any feeding records for North Carolina. - View
Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to lights.
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for Montane Rosaceous Thickets
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 appears to be uncommon in North Carolina, with fewer than 10 site records as of 2024. More information is needed on host use and habitat requirements within the state before we can accurately assess its conservation status.

 Photo Gallery for Acleris nivisellana - Snowy-shouldered Acleris Moth

Photos: 11

Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-07-03
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2022-07-03
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2022-03-22
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: tom ward on 2021-10-11
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: tom ward on 2021-10-11
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: tom ward on 2021-07-23
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2019-03-25
Buncombe Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Vin Stanton on 2018-07-17
Buncombe Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2018-07-14
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2018-06-30
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2018-06-30
Madison Co.
Comment: