Blastodacna atra
Blastodacna atra, the apple pith moth, is a moth of the family Elachistidae. It is known from most of Europe and it has been introduced to North America.
| Blastodacna atra | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Elachistidae |
| Genus: | Blastodacna |
| Species: | B. atra |
| Binomial name | |
| Blastodacna atra | |
| Synonyms | |
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Description
The wingspan is 11–13 mm. The head is white. Forewings are narrow, dark fuscous; a broad white dorsal streak, sprinkled with dark fuscous from base to tornus, with broad triangular indentation at 2/5, including a black scale-tuft; from apex of this streak a slender whitish fascia to costa before apex, emitting a branch posteriorly in middle and sometimes one anteriorly below it; a black scale-tuft in disc before this. Hindwings are grey. [2]
Adults are on wing from May to September in western Europe.[3]
The larvae mine inside young shoots of apples (Malus species) and can be found by looking for small heaps of frass. Occasionally there may be a small swelling and the young shoot may die off.[4]
Distribution
The apple pith moth is found in most of Europe. It is an introduced species in North America, where it has been recorded from Massachusetts and Ontario.
References
- "Blastodacna atra (Haworth, 1828)". Fauma Europaea. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
- Meyrick, E., 1895 A Handbook of British Lepidoptera MacMillan, London pdf
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Keys and description - Kimber, Ian. "39.002 BF906 Apple Pith Moth Blastodacna atra (Haworth, 1828)". UKmoths. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
- Ellis, W N. "Blastodacna atra (Haworth, 1828) apple pith moth". Plant Parasites of Europe. Retrieved 15 April 2020.