Moths of North Carolina
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Phyllocnistis Members:
70 NC Records

Phyllocnistis insignis Frey & Boll, 1876 - No Common Name


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Taxonomy
Superfamily: Gracillarioidea Family: GracillariidaeSubfamily: PhyllocnistinaeTribe: [Phyllocnistini]P3 Number: 330398.00 MONA Number: 846.00
Comments: Phyllocnistis is a large genus with more than 125 described species worldwide, with 16 species currently recognized in North America. Davis and Wagner (2011) surmised that there may be hundreds of undescribed species in the neotropics. The adults of some species are very similar, and knowledge of the host plant and mine characteristics is helpful in identifying morphologically similar species (Eiseman, 2019).
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Photographs: MPG, BugGuide, GBIF, BOLDTechnical Description, Adults: Forbes (1923)Technical Description, Immature Stages: Forbes (1923)                                                                                 
Adult Markings: The adults are boldly marked with gray, orange, white, and black patterning and are not easily confused with other species. The head and thorax are lead-colored, and the forewing is mostly lead-colored from the base to the middle. The lead-colored region is bordered by a thinner orangish region that is black-edged and extends almost to the apical margin. The costal margin is black and expands into a dark, triangular region near the middle that often has light grayish or whitish marks within. Light spotting continues from there along the costal margin to the apex. A conspicuous black spot occurs on the outer margin.
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Immatures and Development: The larvae of Phyllocnistis are leafminers that typically have four instars. The first three are highly specialized sap-feeding stages that lack both legs and eyes. The final instar is a non-feeding stage that spins a cocoon in an enlarged chamber at the end of the mine. P. insignis has pale yellow larvae that create elongated, sinuous, linear mines that are confined to the upper leaf surface. The mines are often entirely white, but sometimes have dark frass either in the middle or along the edges of the broadest portions of mature mines (Eiseman, 2019). The larvae spin a whitish cocoon in an enlarged terminal chamber. The cocoon eventually turns brown, and the adult moth emerges from the upper epidermis. The pupal skin can often be seen attached to the emergence site. Jim Petranka found mature mines with larvae in February in western North Carolina. This suggests that eggs from the last autumn brood hatch in late fall, and the larvae overwinter in the mines. Additional observations are needed to determine whether the adults also overwinter since Phyllocnistis species typically overwinter as adults.
Larvae ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos, especially where associated with known host plants.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution: P. insignis is widely distributed in eastern North America from Ontario, Nova Scotia and Wisconsin southward to Texas, Louisiana and Florida. In North Carolina, this species appears to be common in the Piedmont and Blue Ridge, but uncommon 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)

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