Moths of North Carolina

Scientific Name:	Common Name:		Family (Alpha): Choose a Family

Home

View PDF	Gracillariidae Members:	Caloptilia Members:	92 NC Records

Caloptilia bimaculatella (Ely, 1915) - Maple Caloptilia

Taxonomy

Superfamily:
Gracillarioidea

Family:
Gracillariidae

Subfamily:
Gracillariinae

Tribe:
[Gracillariini]

P3 Number:
33a0162

MONA Number:
595.00

Comments: Caloptilia is a large genus with nearly 300 described species; 64 species have been described in North America north of Mexico. The larvae begin as leaf-mining sap-feeders, but the latter instars usually exit the mines and feed within a conical roll that begins at the leaf apex or at the tip of a leaf lobe.

Species Status: Caloptilia bimaculatella and C. speciosella are phenotypically similar species that both have two rounded, triangular marks (costal patches) on the forewing. Braun (1939) described the latter from Ohio and Kentucky, and specimens have not been collected from areas outside of this region since her original description. C. speciosella differs in having the triangular marks more separated (costal patches separated by ¼ to ½ the width of the larger patch), and in the coloration of the antennae and cilia of the forewings (purplish-fuscous in C. speciosella versus yellowish-gray in C. bimaculatella). The forewings are also more brilliantly purple in C. speciosella. Specimens from North Carolina vary markedly in the degree of separation of the costal patches and coloration of the antennae and cilia. Although certain specimens conform to the description of C. speciosella and others to C. bimaculatella, some appear intermediate between the two species. Here we treat all forms as C. bimaculatella until the status of C. speciosella is better resolved.

Identification

Field Guide Descriptions: Beadle and Leckie (2012)

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

Technical Description, Adults: Beadle and Leckie (2012)

Adult Markings: The forewing ground color, the top of the head, and the top of the thorax are purplish to brown. The forewing has two golden, rounded triangles (costal patches) that often touch or nearly touch, and the middle one is larger - reaching almost to the dorsal edge of the wing. The face is white and the labial palps are white with dark tips. The tibia and femur of the front and middle leg are dark brown to purplish brown, while the tarsi are white with dark spots near the tarsal joints (often faint). The rear legs is uniformly light tan to whitish. Mark Shields has collected specimens from Onslow County on the coast that have the apical triangle greatly reduced or missing, but otherwise conform to C. bimaculatella. We elected to assigned these to C. bimaculatella, although they may represent an undescribed species.

Wingspan: 11 mm (Ely, 1915)

Forewing Length: Total length approximately 7 mm (Beadle and Leckie (2012)

Structural photos

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

Immatures and Development: Details of early larval development are lacking, but this species presumably has a typical Caloptilia developmental sequence with early instars that are sap-feeding leaf-miners. The later instars feed within a conical roll that begins at the leaf apex or at the tip of a leaf lobe. The leaf rolls have been found on several species of maples, which are the host plants.

Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.

Distribution in North Carolina

Distribution: This species is broadly distributed in eastern North America, with populations ranging from southern Canada southward to Florida and westward to near the Mississippi River. In North Carolina, our records as of 2019 are entirely from the Blue Ridge and Piedmont, even though maples are common in the Coastal Plain.

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: Caloptilia bimaculatella appears to be multivoltine, with adults active from mid-April through September.

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: Caloptilia bimaculatella uses maples as host species and is primarily found in habitats with Red Maple (Acer rubrum), Sugar Maple (A. saccharum)x and Silver Maple (Acer saccharinum). This includes mixed pine-hardwood forests, deciduous forests, as well as urban landscapes.

Larval Host Plants: Conical leaf rolls with larvae have been found on several species of maples in the eastern US, including Red Maple (Acer rubrum), Sugar Maple (A. saccharum), and Silver Maple (A. saccharinum) (Eiseman, 2019). We do not have any feeding records in North Carolina. - View

Observation Methods: The adults are attracted to UV lights. Searching for larvae in the rolled leaf tips of maples may prove to be a productive way to document local populations.

Wikipedia

See also Habitat Account for General Maple Forests

Status in North Carolina

Natural Heritage Program Status:

Natural Heritage Program Ranks: GNR S4S5

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

Comments:

Photo Gallery for Caloptilia bimaculatella - Maple Caloptilia

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

	Recorded by: John Petranka and Sally Gewalt on 2025-04-29 Warren Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-04-26 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2025-04-20 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2025-04-05 Chatham Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George on 2025-04-04 Durham Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George, Rich Teper on 2025-03-28 Chatham Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2024-08-05 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-07-12 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-07-10 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-07-06 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-05-24 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-04-19 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2024-04-15 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2024-04-02 Transylvania Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2024-04-01 Chatham Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-07-17 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-13 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-07-06 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: John Petranka on 2023-07-04 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2023-06-17 Transylvania Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2023-06-17 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Jeff Niznik on 2023-06-06 Durham Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2023-06-06 Durham Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-06-03 Orange Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2023-05-31 Transylvania Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-05-25 Madison Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-05-09 Madison Co. Comment:		Recorded by: David George on 2023-04-13 Durham Co. Comment:
	Recorded by: David George, Stephen Dunn, Jeff Niznik on 2023-04-13 Orange Co. Comment:		Recorded by: Jim Petranka on 2023-04-06 Madison Co. Comment: