Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFGracillariidae Members: Parornix Members: 2 NC Records

Parornix dubitella (Dietz, 1907) - No Common Name

Parornix dubitellaParornix dubitellaParornix dubitella
Taxonomy
Family:
Gracillariidae		Subfamily:
Parornichinae		P3 Number:
33a0130		 MONA Number:
671.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Dietz (1907)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Eisemn (2022)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: Parornix dubitella is similar to several other Parornix species and is best identified by barcoding or genitalia. The head, thorax and forewings are finely mottled with gray, pale white and fuscus scales to produce an overall grayish-fuscous color. The basal two-thirds of the inner margin, the head, the head tuft and the thorax are often lighter colored than the remainder of the forewing, and the labial palps are usually dusky colored. The forewing has seven or eight dull-white costal streaks that extend inward no farther than the middle of the wing, with the areas in between filled with dark scales. The only other conspicuous marks include a rounded, blackish spot below the apex, a smudged, black blotch just below the inner margin at around one-half the wing length, and a smaller blackish smudge below the inner margin at around one-fourth the wing length. The terminal fringe is white with two blackish bands, including one prominent one near the middle and a partial second one along the outer edge that is most evident on the apical half of the fringe.
Wingspan: 10 mm (Dietz, 1907).
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable only by close inspection of structural features or by DNA analysis.
Immatures and Development: The larval life history is poorly documented. Dietz (1907) reported that five adults were reared from larvae that were collected in August and emerged after overwintering in May. They initially made a linear mine and pupated beneath the folded edge of a leaf. Steven Whitebread (cited in Eiseman, 2022) noted that the larva forms a tentiform mine, then exits to continue feeding in a leaf fold. Two larvae that Jeff Niznik and David George reared to adults from a serviceberry were collected on 6 August, with the adults emerging
on 18 August. Both larvae were skeletonizing tissue beneath leaf folds, but exited these and pupated beneath a much smaller leaf fold.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable only through rearing to adulthood.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Parornix dubitella is generally associated with cool climates and occurs across much of southern Canada from British Columbia eastward to Prince Edward Island. In the US specimens have been found in Maine, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, Virginia, and North Carolina where Jeff Niznik and David George successfully reared two adults from Transylvania County in 2025.
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Parornix dubitellaAlamance Alexander Alleghany Anson Ashe Avery Beaufort Bertie Bladen Brunswick Buncombe Burke Cabarrus Caldwell Camden Carteret Caswell Catawba Chatham Cherokee Chowan Clay Cleveland Columbus Craven Cumberland Currituck Dare Davidson Davie Duplin Durham Edgecombe Forsyth Franklin Gaston Gates Graham Granville Greene Guilford Halifax Harnett Haywood Henderson Hertford Hoke Hyde Iredell Jackson Johnston Jones Lee Lenoir Lincoln Macon Madison Martin McDowell Mecklenburg Mitchell Montgomery Moore Nash New Hanover Northampton Onslow Orange Pamlico Pasquotank Pender Perquimans Person Pitt Polk Randolph Richmond Robeson Rockingham Rowan Rutherford Sampson Scotland Stanly Stokes Surry Swain Transylvania Tyrrell Union Vance Wake Warren Washington Watauga Wayne Wilkes Wilson Yadkin Yancey
Flight Dates:
High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
Piedmont (Pd)
Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge 		Image showing flight dates by month for High Mountains greater than 4,000 feet, Low Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain: adults.
Immature Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge 		Image showing flight dates by month for High Mountains greater than 4,000 feet, Low Mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain: immatures.
Flight Comments: May through August.
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: This species is typically found in cool, mesic forests.
Larval Host Plants: The larvae specialize on members of the Rosaceae, including species of Amelanchier, Malus, Sorbus and Aronia (Eiseman, 2022). As of 2025, we have one rearing record in North Carolina from a serviceberry (Amelanchier sp.). Amelanchier, Malus, Sorbus, Aronia
Wikipedia
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
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 Photo Gallery for Parornix dubitella - No common name

Photos: 3
Parornix dubitella
Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George on 2024-08-18
Transylvania Co.
Comment: 		Parornix dubitella
Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George on 2024-08-18
Transylvania Co.
Comment:
Parornix dubitella
Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George on 2024-08-06
Transylvania Co.
Comment: