Adult Recognition
FWL: 6.0-9.0 mm
Forewing color varies from grayish brown to yellow brown. Wing pattern is uniform across most individuals, with a dark costal spot and poorly-defined median fascia. Males have a forewing costal fold. Male genitalia are distinctive with two long cornuti in the aedeagus and a small membranous lobe on the apex of the valva. Females have a long, thornlike signum in the corpus bursae.
Clepsis fucana, C. penetralis, C. peritana, and C. virescana are all similar in appearance. Clepsis fucana is generally larger than the other three species and is found only on the West Coast. Clepsis penetralis has only been recorded from Colorado, Utah, and Vermont, although it may be misidentified in collections making its true distribution unknown. Clepsis peritana is the most commonly collected Clepsis, and it can be found throughout the United States and southern Canada. Clepsis virescana is larger and more boreal than C. peritana and it is not present in the Southeast. The following table lists diagnostic features that can be used to separate these four Clepsis species:
Clepsis species | FWL | Male forewing costal fold | Male valva membranous lobe | Female ductus bursae | Female signum | Distribution |
fucana | 6.5-10.5 mm | absent | present as small lobe | straight | absent | West Coast |
penetralis | 6.0-7.5 mm | absent | present as moderate lobe | weakly twisted | absent | Unknown; recorded from Colorado, Utah, and Vermont |
peritana | 4.5-7.5 mm | absent | absent; entire apex is membranous | tightly coiled | absent | United States and southern Canada |
virescana | 6.0-9.0 mm | present | present as small lobe | straight | present | United States and southern Canada; not present in the Southeast |
Larval Morphology
Although the larva has not been described, it is assumed to be morphologically similar to larvae of other Clepsis species such as C. peritana and C. fucana.
Biology
Little has been reported on the life history of this species. Adult capture records indicate that C. virescana is bivoltine in central California. Powell (1964) reared larvae on fresh and decaying leaves of Prunus and Rosa and hypothesized that C. virescana may have feeding habits similar to those of C. peritana. In the laboratory, larvae completed development in September and October.
Host plants
The only documented host is western chokecherry, although Powell and Opler (2009) state that the larvae will feed on various soft-leaf plants and decaying leaves.
Family | Genus/species | Common name |
Rosaceae | Prunus virginiana L. var. demissa (Nutt.) Torr. | western chokecherry |
Distribution
Clepsis virescana is widespread throughout the continental United States, southern Canada, and northern Mexico. It is generally found in more boreal conditions than C. peritana and is not present in the southeastern United States.
References
Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). The Canadian Entomologist Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.
Powell, J. A. 1964. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp.
Powell, J. A. and P. A. Opler. 2009. Moths of western North America. University of California Press, Berkeley. 369 pp.
Razwoski, J. 1979. Revision of the genus Clepsis Guenee (Lepidoptera, Tortricidae). Part II. Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia. 24: 113-152.