Native
Pandemis limitata (Robinson) (Tortricidae: Tortricinae: Archipini)
Common names: three-lined leaf roller
Synonyms: limitana (Pandemis)
FWL: 7.0-9.5 mm (males); 9.0-12.0 mm (females)
Adults are brown with fasciatefasciate:
a wing pattern that is comprised primarily of transverse bands (fasciae) 
markings and bicolored gray and white hindwings. Males lack a forewing costal foldforewing costal fold:
a flap or fold at the base of the forewing that contains specialized sex scales
and have notched antennae.
Male genitalia are characterized by a broad, rounded uncusuncus:
a sclerotized process which is fused to the posterodorsal margin of tergum IX
; circular valvaevalvae:
plural of "valva"
; and a pistol-shaped phallusphallus:
the male intromittent organ (penis); see "aedeagus" 
. Female genitalia are characterized by a ductus bursaeductus bursae:
a membranous tube connecting the ostium bursae to the corpus bursae
with a sclerotizedsclerotized:
hardened; usually in reference to larval structures or adult genitalia 
portion near the ostiumostium:
see ostium bursae 
and a short, daggar-like signumsignum:
a sclerotized projection or patch on the interior of the corpus bursae
with a large basal plate in the corpus bursaecorpus bursae:
a dilated membranous sac at the anterior end of the bursa copulatrix
.
The following account is summarized from MacKay (1962a).
Mature larva 20-23 mm in length; width of head 1.7-2.0 mm; head pale green with blackish laterallateral:
to the side
pigmentation; prothoracic shieldprothoracic shield:
a sclerotized plate on the dorsal surface of the prothorax 
concolorous with head but with black laterallateral:
to the side markings; body, legs, anal shieldanal shield:
a sclerotized plate on the dorsal surface of the last abdominal segment (in larvae) 
green; pinaculapinacula:
flattened sclerotized plates on a caterpillar that bear the setae
large, setae very long; anal fork present and well-developed; SV group on A1, 2, 7, 8, 9 numbering 3:3:3:2:2.
Detailed figures of larval chaetotaxychaetotaxy:
the arrangement of setae (in reference to Lepidoptera larvae), often depicted on a "setal map"
are available in MacKay (1962a).
Pandemis limitata is similar to Pandemis pyrusana and Pandemis canadana, and the three species are not easily separated. A combination of geographic distribution and wing color can assist in identification (see below). In the Pacific Northwest and central Rocky Mountains all three species are present and a reliable species-level identification is difficult or impossible based solely on morphology..
The following table lists a combination of wing color and geographic distribution that can be used to identify many Pandemis individuals collected in the U.S.
| Species | Forewing color | Hindwing color | Sex scales on male 2nd abd. segment | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| canadana | medium to dark brown | all gray | present | Maine, Colorado, Wyoming, Southern Canada |
| cerasana | straw to light brown | grayish brown | present | Pacific Northwest, British Columbia; Europe and Asia |
| heparana | medium brown | light to medium grayish brown | absent | Pacific Northwest; Northeastern U.S. and neighboring Canada; Europe and Asia |
| lamprosana | tan to light brown | white to light gray | absent | Eastern U.S. and neighboring Canda, south to Tennessee/North Carolina |
| limitata | straw to medium brown | gray and white | present | Eastern U.S. and neighboring Canda, generally absent in the U.S. west of the Rocky Mtns. |
| pyrusana | straw to medium brown | all white | present | Rocky Mtns. west to California, southern Alberta and British Columbia |
MacKay (1962a) examined several species of Nearctic Pandemis and could find no species-specific larval characters. Diagnostic characters for the genus include: SD2 on A1-8 on same pinaculumpinaculum:
singular of "pinacula"
as SD1; L1 and L2 anterioranterior:
before, to the front, toward the head 
to spiracle on A2-8; SV group on A1,2,7,8,9 usually 3:3:3:2:2; D2s on A8 as far apart as D1s; D1 on A9 on its own pinaculumpinaculum:
singular of "pinacula"; anal setae very long; anal combanal comb:
a toothed structure on the last abdominal segment used to eject frass away from the feeding larva; also termed "anal fork" 
with 6-8 teeth.
The following account is summarized from Chapman & Lienk (1971).
Pandemis limitata completes one or two generations over most of its range. Adults are present June through August.
Females lay eggs on the upper surface of leaves in large masses that contain between 60-182 eggs. Larvae feed on terminal leaf growth and occasionally on fruit. Those of the first generation complete development in late July or early August. Pupation occurs in the final larval feeding site and adults emerge in approximately 10 days. Third instar larvae of the second generation construct a hibernaculum in a protected site on small diameter growth and overwinter until the following spring, when they resume feeding on leaves and young fruits.
Larvae of Pandemis limitata have been recorded feeding on a variety of deciduous woody plants. This species is considered a minor pest of apple in some regions.
| Host plant | Host plant family | Reference(s) |
| Acer negundo | Aceraceae | 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. |
| Acer saccharinum | Aceraceae | 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. |
| Alnus incana | 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. |
| Alnus rubra | 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. |
| Alnus sp. | Betulaceae | Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.; 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. |
| 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. |
| Betula sp. | Betulaceae | Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.; 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. |
| Corylus americana | Betulaceae | 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. |
| Corylus sp. | Betulaceae | Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89. |
| Viburnum sp. | Caprifoliaceae | 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. |
| Euonymus atropurpureus | Celastraceae | 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. |
| Cornus racemosa | Cornaceae | 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). |
| Vaccinium sp. | Ericaceae | Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.; Wagner et al. 1995Wagner et al. 1995: Wagner, D. L., Peacock, J. W., Carter, J. L., Talley, S. E. 1995. Spring caterpillar fauna of oak and blueberry in a Virginia deciduous forest. Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 88: 416-426. |
| Amorpha fruticosa | Fabaceae | 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. |
| Trifolium sp. | Fabaceae | Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89. |
| Castanea sp. | Fagaceae | MacKay 1962aMacKay 1962a: MacKay, M. R. 1962a. Larvae of the North American Tortricinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 28: 1-182. |
| Quercus alba | Fagaceae | 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. |
| Quercus macrocarpa | Fagaceae | 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. |
| Quercus sp. | Fagaceae | Freeman 1958Freeman 1958: Freeman, T. N. 1958. The Archipinae of North America (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 7 (Vol. 90): 1-89.; Wagner et al. 1995Wagner et al. 1995: Wagner, D. L., Peacock, J. W., Carter, J. L., Talley, S. E. 1995. Spring caterpillar fauna of oak and blueberry in a Virginia deciduous forest. Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 88: 416-426. |
| 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. |
| Host plant table (embedded)
View full screen host table here DistributionPandemis limitata ranges in southern Canada from Nova Scotia to British Columbia and in the U.S. as far west as the Rocky Mountains. It is generally absent in the U.S. west of the Rockies. It is absent from the Gulf Coast. There is a single record from Durango, Mexico. LinksAdditional photos and a distribution map of this species in North America are available at Moth Photographers Group.
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