Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFGracillariidae Members:
Cameraria Members:
22 NC Records

Cameraria betulivora (Walsingham, 1891) - Birch-leaf Blotchminer Moth


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Taxonomy
Superfamily: Gracillarioidea Family: GracillariidaeSubfamily: LithocolletinaeTribe: [Lithocolletini]P3 Number: 330347.00 MONA Number: 810.00
Comments: Cameraria is a genus of leaf-mining micromoths. Many species are stenophagous and specialize on a small number of closely related host species. There are currently more than 50 described species in North America.
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Walsingham (1891); Braun (1908)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Eiseman (2019)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The following is based primarily on the original description of a single female by Walsingham (1891) and illustrated by Braun (1908), as well as our own specimens from North Carolina. The antenna is grayish above and white beneath. The palps, head, and face are white, while the crown tuft and thorax is reddish saffron. The forewing is shining reddish saffron and has a small dull white costal spot at one fourth the wing length. Opposite this, and slightly more basally, is a small dorsal spot that is dull white. There is a slender white fascia at the middle of the wing that is angulated outwardly near the costal margin. The fascia has a series of black scales on its outer edge that vary among individuals from a few isolated scales to a well-defined black margin. Beyond this a small costal streak and an opposite dorsal streak, both dull white, with blackish scales on their outer edges. A group of black scales at the apex of the wing is preceded by either a small dull whitish mark or a dull white streak. The apical cilia are grayish with saffron-tinged bases, and on some individuals have a slender blackish line along their middle that passes around the apex. The hindwings are dark gray with gray cilia. The abdomen is gray and tinged with saffron posteriorly. The front and middle legs are whitish with blackish banding on the lower portions. The hind legs are mostly whitish, with a very faint indication of darker scaling on the penultimate tarsal joint.
Wingspan: 7 mm (Braun, 1908).
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The larvae produce upper-surface blotch mines on birch leaves. These are sometimes almost circular in shape (Walsingham, 1891), but can also be more complex with elongated components to the blotch. As of 2022, we have several site records for occupied mines. The mines contained a single larva, were roughly circular or irregularly oblong in shape, and had frass that was deposited towards the center of the mine.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: Cameraria betulivora has been documented in Ontario, Quebec, Maine, and in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Braun (1912) first found this species in Jackson Co., and it was not until 2010 that it was collected again in North Carolina (BOLD). It has since been found at several additional sites in association with birch trees.
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)

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