Acleris pulverosana

Type

Native

Taxonomy

Acleris pulverosana (Walker) (Tortricidae: Tortricinae: Tortricini)

Based on DNA sequence data, Gilligan et al. (2020b) considered North American populations of Acleris hastiana to be distinct from Palearctic populations and applied the name pulverosana Walker to the North American populations.

Note: Some of the photos of this species on this page may be of Acleris hastiana, formerly considered a senior synonym of A. pulverosana (see Gilligan et al. 2020bGilligan et al. 2020b:
Gilligan T. M., Brown, J. W., Baixeras, J. 2020b. Immigrant Tortricidae: Holarctic versus Introduced Species in North America. Insects. 11(9): 1-59.). Both species share many of the same color morphs and the genitalia of both sexes are extremely similar.

Adult Recognition

FWLFWL:
forewing length; the distance from the base of the forewing to the apex, including fringe
: 7.0-9.5 mm

Acleris pulverosana is a highly variable species with many different forms, making identification of adults difficult. According to Powell (1964), California individuals usually have uniform brown, black, or dull-red forewings with a gray basal band.

Both male and female genitalia are extremely similar to those of A. hastiana.

Larval Morphology

The following account is summarized from MacKay (1962a).

Mature larva 14 mm in length; width of head 1.5 mm; head brownish yellow with darker laterallateral:
to the side
pigmentation; prothoracic shieldprothoracic shield:
a sclerotized plate on the dorsal surface of the prothorax
and body pale green; pinaculapinaculum:
flattened sclerotized plates on a caterpillar that bear the setae
conspicuous, moderate in size; anal fork present with 7-9 spines; SV group on A1, 2, 7, 8, 9 typically 3:3:2:2:2.

Similar Species

Acleris pulverosana is similar to A. hastiana and, until recently, were thought to be the same species. Minor differences in the genitalia of the two taxa were discussed by Obraztsov (1963)Obraztsov (1963):
Obraztsov, N. S. 1963. Some North American moths of the genus Acleris . Proceedings of the United States National Museum. 114: 213-270., but were treated as a single species. In addition to genetic differences, the two species can be separated by range: A. pulverosana is restricted to North America and A. hastiana is restricted to Europe, Asia, and North Africa. There are several other species of Acleris which could be confused with these two species, but they can be usually separated by characters of the genitalia.

Biology

Very little is known about the life cycle of A. pulverosana beyond known host plants. This is likely due to it being considered synonymous with A. hastiana for a long time. There appear to be at least two generations per year in the southern portions of its range.

Acleris pulverosana has been recorded (as A. hastiana) feeding on Andromeda, Betula, Ceanothus, Myrica, Populus, Quercus, Rhododendron, and Salix.

Host plant	Host plant family	Reference(s)
Betula papyrifera	Betulaceae	Prentice 1966Prentice 1966: Prentice, R. M. 1966. Vol. 4. Microlepidoptera. In : Forest Lepidoptera of Canada recorded by the Forest Insect Survey. Dept. For. Canada Publ. 1142: 543-840.
Andromeda sp.	Ericaceae	Forbes 1923Forbes 1923: Forbes, W. M. T. 1923. The Lepidoptera of New York and neighboring states. Primitive forms, Microlepidoptera, Pyraloids, Bombyces. Cornell Univ. Argic. Exp. Sta., Mem. 68. 729 pp.
Rhododendron sp.	Ericaceae	Dyar 1904Dyar 1904: Dyar, H. G. 1904. The Lepidoptera of Kootenai District of British Columbia. Proceedings of the United States National Museum. 27: 779-938.
Vaccinium sp.	Ericaceae	Forbes 1923Forbes 1923: Forbes, W. M. T. 1923. The Lepidoptera of New York and neighboring states. Primitive forms, Microlepidoptera, Pyraloids, Bombyces. Cornell Univ. Argic. Exp. Sta., Mem. 68. 729 pp.
Quercus dumosa	Fagaceae	Powell 1964bPowell 1964b: Powell, J. A. 1964b. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp.
Myrica gale	Myricaceae	Ferguson 1975Ferguson 1975: Ferguson, D. C. 1975. Host records for Lepidoptera reared in eastern North America. United States Department of Agriculture Technical Bulletin 1521. 49 pp.
Ceanothus thrysiflorus	Rhamnaceae	Powell 1964bPowell 1964b: Powell, J. A. 1964b. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp.
Populus balsamifera	Salicaceae	Prentice 1966Prentice 1966: Prentice, R. M. 1966. Vol. 4. Microlepidoptera. In : Forest Lepidoptera of Canada recorded by the Forest Insect Survey. Dept. For. Canada Publ. 1142: 543-840.
Populus tremuloides	Salicaceae	Prentice 1966Prentice 1966: Prentice, R. M. 1966. Vol. 4. Microlepidoptera. In : Forest Lepidoptera of Canada recorded by the Forest Insect Survey. Dept. For. Canada Publ. 1142: 543-840.
Salis coulteri	Salicaceae	Powell 2006Powell 2006: Powell, J. A. 2006. Database of Lepidoptera rearing lots, 1960-2005. University of California Berkeley, CA.
Salix babylonica	Salicaceae	Powell 1964bPowell 1964b: Powell, J. A. 1964b. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp.
Salix hookeriana	Salicaceae	Powell 2006Powell 2006: Powell, J. A. 2006. Database of Lepidoptera rearing lots, 1960-2005. University of California Berkeley, CA.
Salix laevigata	Salicaceae	Powell 1964bPowell 1964b: Powell, J. A. 1964b. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp.
Salix lasiolepis Benth.	Salicaceae	Powell 1964bPowell 1964b: Powell, J. A. 1964b. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp., 2006; De Benedictis et al. 1990De Benedictis et al. 1990: De Benedictis, J. A., Wagner, D. L., Whitfield, J. B. 1990. Larval hosts of Microlepidoptera of the San Bruno Mountains, California. Atala. 16: 14-35.
Salix scouleriana	Salicaceae	Powell 2006Powell 2006: Powell, J. A. 2006. Database of Lepidoptera rearing lots, 1960-2005. University of California Berkeley, CA.
Salix sessilifolia	Salicaceae	Powell 1964bPowell 1964b: Powell, J. A. 1964b. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp.
Salix sp.	Salicaceae	McDunnough 1934McDunnough 1934: McDunnough, J. 1934. The Canadian species of the tortricid genus Peronea . Canadian Journal of Research. 11: 290-332.; LACM IndexLACM Index: LACM Index. Records from the card file at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History, Los Angeles, California; transcribed by Gaeden Robinson (BMNH).; Powell 1964bPowell 1964b: Powell, J. A. 1964b. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp.; MacKay 1962aMacKay 1962a: MacKay, M. R. 1962a. Larvae of the North American Tortricinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 28: 1-182.; Emmet 1992Emmet 1992: Emmet, A.M. 1992. Life history and habits of the British Lepidoptera. Pp. 61-300. In : Emmet, A.M., Heath, J. (eds.), The Moths and Butterflies of Great Britain and Ireland, 7. 400 pp., Harley Books, Colchester.