Type

Native

Taxonomy

Choristoneura obsoletana (Walker) (Tortricidae: Tortricinae: Archipini)

Common names: obsolete-banded leafroller moth

Synonyms: sanbornana (Tortrix), seminolana (Tortrix), transiturana (Cacoecia), vesperana (Lozotaenia)

Adult Recognition

FWLFWL:
forewing length; the distance from the base of the forewing to the apex, including fringe
: 7.5-10.0 mm (males); 11.0-12.0 mm (females)

Head and thorax red-orange to red-brown; forewing with fasciaefascia:
a dark transverse band on the forewing
usually nearly obsolete and poorly-defined, median fasciafascia:
a dark transverse band on the forewing
often only visible along costacosta:
the anterior margin of each wing
and inner margininner margin:
see dorsum
; hindwing pale brown; male without forewing costal foldforewing costal fold:
a flap or fold at the base of the forewing that contains specialized sex scales
; females often with a strong red wash to the forewing.

Male genitalia are characterized by triangular valvaevalva:
an appendage flanking the intromittent organ that is used to clasp the female during copulation
with dense, fine spicules on the sacculussacculus:
the ventral margin of the male valva
and a moderate, finger-like uncusuncus:
a sclerotized process which is fused to the posterodorsal margin of tergum IX
(Dang 1992Dang 1992:
Dang, P. T. 1992. Morphological study of male genitalia with phylogenetic inference of Choristoneura Lederer (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist. 124: 7-48.). Female genitalia are characterized by a long, thin ductus bursae and a large, hook-like signumsignum:
a sclerotized projection or patch on the interior of the corpus bursae
. 

Larval Morphology

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

Length of mature larva 20-22 mm; width of 1.9-2.2 mm; head brownish yellow to orange with darker laterallateral:
to the side
pigmentation; prothoracic shieldprothoracic shield:
a sclerotized plate on the dorsal surface of the prothorax
brownish yellow or yellow, with darker margins; legs, pinaculapinaculum:
flattened sclerotized plates on a caterpillar that bear the setae
 brown; body greenish brown; anal shieldanal shield:
a sclerotized plate on the dorsal surface of the last abdominal segment (in larvae)
brownish yellow; SV group on A1, 2, 7, 8, 9 numbering 3:3:3:2:2.

Detailed figures of of larval chaetotaxychaetotaxy:
the arrangement of setae (in reference to Lepidoptera larvae), often depicted on a "setal map"
are available in MacKay (1962a).

Similar Species

Choristoneura obsoletana is similar to several species of Choristoneura, especially C. parallela and C. zapulata (the latter not treated on this site) as males of all three of these species lack a forewing costal foldforewing costal fold:
a flap or fold at the base of the forewing that contains specialized sex scales
and have a convex rather than sinuous costal margincostal margin:
see costa
. The fasciaefascia:
a dark transverse band on the forewing
of C. obsoletana are much more poorly-defined than in C. parallela. Dissection may be required to separate C. zapulata, but distribution may be enough: C. zapulata is primarily boreal in distribution whereas C. obsoletana occurs south of the boreal zone and is especially common along the Gulf coast.

Biology

Little is known of the biology of C. obsoletana beyond the known host plants listed below. Adults can be found from late May to September, with Florida records from as late as October. Several generations likely occur per year, especially in southern states.

Host plant	Host plant family	Reference(s)
Asimina sp.	Annonaceae	Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.
Asimina triloba	Annonaceae	Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.
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.
Chamaedaphne calyculata	Ericaceae	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.
Gaylussacia sp.	Ericaceae	Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.; MacKay 1962aMacKay 1962a: MacKay, M. R. 1962a. Larvae of the North American Tortricinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 28: 1-182.
Lespedeza cuneata	Fabaceae	MacKay 1962aMacKay 1962a: MacKay, M. R. 1962a. Larvae of the North American Tortricinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 28: 1-182.
Senna sp.	Fabaceae	Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.; MacKay 1962aMacKay 1962a: MacKay, M. R. 1962a. Larvae of the North American Tortricinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 28: 1-182.
Aronia melanocarpa	Rosaceae	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.
Fragaria sp.	Rosaceae	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).; Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.; MacKay 1962aMacKay 1962a: MacKay, M. R. 1962a. Larvae of the North American Tortricinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 28: 1-182.
Rubus sp.	Rosaceae	Freman 1958
Typha sp.	Typhaceae	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).

Host plant table (embedded)

View full screen host table here

Distribution

Choristoneura obsoletana is distributed in the eastern United States south of the boreal zone, ranging as far north as northern Illinois and Massachusetts. It appears to be more common in the southeast, especially in Florida and along the Gulf Coast. Western records are dubious and likely refer to misidentifications of similar Choristoneura species or other species of Archipini such as Aphelia alleniana.

Links

Additional photos and a distribution map of this species in North America are available at Moth Photographers Group.