Native
Epiblema otiosana (Clemens) (Tortricidae: Olethreutinae: Eucosmini)
Common name: bidens borer moth
Synonyms: inclinana (Paedisca)
FWL: 5.0-9.5 mm
Head and thorax brown to dark brown, thorax with conspicuous dorsaldorsal:
upper, to the top, on the back 
tuft. Ground color of forewing brown; creamy white interfascial spot variably developed, irregular in shape, ocellusocellus:
forewing pattern element - an ovoid region anterior to the tornus; adult head - a simple insect "eye" located dorsal to the compound eye 
pale brown-orange to white with two or three small black dots; costal strigulaecostal strigulae:
small, usually pale, semirectangular marks along the costa 
weakly contrasting except towards apexapex:
the point furthest removed from the base or at the end of the costal area 
where they are separated by distinct red-orange scales; males without costal fold; hindwing dark brown.
Male genitalia are characterized by a poorly developed uncusuncus:
a sclerotized process which is fused to the posterodorsal margin of tergum IX
; broad, well-developed socii; the dorsaldorsal:
upper, to the top, on the back margin of valvaevalvae:
plural of "valva"
only slightly concave; and the cuculluscucullus:
the distal portion of the male valva
relatively small for the genus. Female genitalia have the sterigmasterigma:
the sclerotized region surrounding the female ostium bursae 
nearly quadrate and corpus bursaecorpus bursae:
a dilated membranous sac at the anterior end of the bursa copulatrix
with two signasigna:
plural of "signum"
.
The following account is summarized from Decker (1932)Decker (1932):
Decker, G.C. 1932. Biology of the Bidens borer, Epiblema otiosana Clemens (Lepidoptera: Olethreutidae). Journal of the New York Entomological Society. 40. 503-509. and MacKay (1959)MacKay (1959):
MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338..
Mature larvae are approximately 12 mm in length, width of head 1.0-1.3 mm. Head brown; prothoracic shieldprothoracic shield:
a sclerotized plate on the dorsal surface of the prothorax 
brown with darker speckling; legs and anal shieldanal shield:
a sclerotized plate on the dorsal surface of the last abdominal segment (in larvae) 
light brown; body yellowish-white with large, nearly black pinaculapinacula:
flattened sclerotized plates on a caterpillar that bear the setae
; anal fork absent. SV group on A1, 2, 7, 8, 9 usually 3:3:2:2:1.
A complete description of larval chaetotaxychaetotaxy:
the arrangement of setae (in reference to Lepidoptera larvae), often depicted on a "setal map"
is given in MacKay (1959)MacKay (1959):
MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338..
The pupa is approximately 10-12 mm in length and light brown to chocolate brown in color.
Epiblema otiosana is very similar to several other species, including Eucosma parmatana and other species of Epiblema. Examination of the genitalia may be necessary. Eucosma parmatana can be easily separated from males of Epiblema by the well-developed ventralventral:
lower, to the bottom, on the under side
angle of the cuculluscucullus:
the distal portion of the male valva, which is absent in Epiblema. The shape of the white interfascial spot may be enough to separate E. otiosana from congeners, but this mark is variable and not always developed. The genitalia of both sexes are most similar to E. dorsisuffusana, but this species has much more extensive white scaling along the inner margininner margin:
see dorsum 
and around the ocellusocellus:
forewing pattern element - an ovoid region anterior to the tornus; adult head - a simple insect "eye" located dorsal to the compound eye .
The following account is summarized from Decker (1932)Decker (1932):
Decker, G.C. 1932. Biology of the Bidens borer, Epiblema otiosana Clemens (Lepidoptera: Olethreutidae). Journal of the New York Entomological Society. 40. 503-509..
Eggs are laid singly or in groups of two to three on the leaves of the host plant, often on the lower surface. Eggs hatch in approximately 4 to 15 days, depending on temperature. In Iowa, eggs are laid from late May to early July, with the first generation of larvae hatching and feeding in mid June to early July. Young larvae feed on leaf buds or burrow into and mine young leaves. As the larva feeds and grows, it migrates from the buds or leaves to the main stem by the second or third instar, leaving wilting and dying tissue behind. The larva will continue feeding in the main stem until pupation occurs in late July and into early August after five to seven instars, with the usual number being five. Total development time from hatching to pupation averages about four weeks.
Pupation occurs in the stem of the host plant. Mature larvae will cut a small exit hole through which the adults will emerge after eclosion, which occurs throughout August. A second generation occurs immediately after with larvae ceasing feeding activity in September and overwintering in the stems of the host plant. Pupation occurs the following spring with adults eclosing in May and June.
Larvae feed primarily on beggarticks (Bidens spp.), but have been recorded from a few other species as well.
| Host plant | Host plant family | Reference(s) |
| Chenopodium sp. | Amaranthaceae | Miller 1987 |
| Ambrosia sp. | Asteraceae | Heinrich 1923bHeinrich 1923b: Heinrich, C. 1923b. Revision of the North American moths of the subfamily Eucosminae of the family Olethreutidae. Bulletin of the United States National Museum. 123: 1-298.; Kimball 1965Kimball 1965: Kimball, C. P. 1965. The Lepidoptera of Florida: an annotated checklist. In : Arthropods of Florida and neighboring land areas, vol. 1. Florida Department of Agriculture, Division of Plant Industry, Gainesville. 363 pp. |
| Bidens cernua | Asteraceae | MacKay 1959MacKay 1959: MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338. |
| Bidens connata | Asteraceae | Decker 1932Decker 1932: Decker, G.C. 1932. Biology of the Bidens borer, Epiblema otiosana Clemens (Lepidoptera: Olethreutidae). Journal of the New York Entomological Society. 40. 503-509. |
| Bidens frondosa | Asteraceae | Heinrich 1923bHeinrich 1923b: Heinrich, C. 1923b. Revision of the North American moths of the subfamily Eucosminae of the family Olethreutidae. Bulletin of the United States National Museum. 123: 1-298.; MacKay 1959MacKay 1959: MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338.; Kimball 1965Kimball 1965: Kimball, C. P. 1965. The Lepidoptera of Florida: an annotated checklist. In : Arthropods of Florida and neighboring land areas, vol. 1. Florida Department of Agriculture, Division of Plant Industry, Gainesville. 363 pp. |
| Bidens vulgata | Asteraceae | Decker 1932Decker 1932: Decker, G.C. 1932. Biology of the Bidens borer, Epiblema otiosana Clemens (Lepidoptera: Olethreutidae). Journal of the New York Entomological Society. 40. 503-509. |
| Bidens sp. | Asteraceae | Decker 1932Decker 1932: Decker, G.C. 1932. Biology of the Bidens borer, Epiblema otiosana Clemens (Lepidoptera: Olethreutidae). Journal of the New York Entomological Society. 40. 503-509.; Godfrey et al. 1987Godfrey et al. 1987: Godfrey, G. L., Cashatt, E. D., Glenn, M. O. 1987. Microlepidoptera from the Sandy Creek and Illinois River Region: A annotated checklist of the suborders Dacnonypha, Monotrysia, and Ditrysia (in part) (Insecta). Spec. Publ. 7. Illinois Natural History Survey.; Miller 1987aMiller 1987a: Miller, W. E. 1987a. Guide to the Olethreutine moths of midland North America (Tortricidae). USDA Forest Service Agriculture Handbook 660: 1-104. |
| Polygonum sp. | Polygonaceae | Heinrich 1923bHeinrich 1923b: Heinrich, C. 1923b. Revision of the North American moths of the subfamily Eucosminae of the family Olethreutidae. Bulletin of the United States National Museum. 123: 1-298.; Kimball 1965Kimball 1965: Kimball, C. P. 1965. The Lepidoptera of Florida: an annotated checklist. In : Arthropods of Florida and neighboring land areas, vol. 1. Florida Department of Agriculture, Division of Plant Industry, Gainesville. 363 pp. |
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Epiblema otiosana is broadly distributed in eastern North America wherever its host plant grows, from North Dakota to New Brunswick, south to Florida and eastern Texas.
