Native
Paralobesia viteana (Clemens) (Tortricidae: Olethreutinae: Olethreutini)
Common names: grape berry moth
Synonyms: vitivorana (Penthina)
FWL: 3.9-5.6 mm
Forewing pattern is similar to other Nearctic species of Paralobesia and Lobesia botrana. The ground color is orange-brown with the basal half of the forewing heavily suffused with chalky blue scales. The fasciaefasciae:
plural of "fascia"
on the distaldistal:
farthest from body, distant from point of attachment
half of the wing are curved and irregular. Males lack a forewing costal foldforewing costal fold:
a flap or fold at the base of the forewing that contains specialized sex scales
. The hindwing is brown, but paler basally.
Male genitalia are characterized by a rudimentary uncusuncus:
a sclerotized process which is fused to the posterodorsal margin of tergum IX
and sclerotizedsclerotized:
hardened; usually in reference to larval structures or adult genitalia 
lobes projecting from the base of the cuculluscucullus:
the distal portion of the male valva
. Female genitalia are characterized by a sterigmasterigma:
the sclerotized region surrounding the female ostium bursae 
situated in a membranous pocket behind 7th sternite and a corpus bursaecorpus bursae:
a dilated membranous sac at the anterior end of the bursa copulatrix
without a signumsignum:
a sclerotized projection or patch on the interior of the corpus bursae
but with two small accessory sacs.
The specimens purported to be P. viteana examined by MacKay (1959)MacKay (1959):
MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338. were collected in southwest Utah, well outside the known range of the species and are questionable. Ensminger (1958) provided detailed descriptions and figures of larvae but these may also be based on incorrectly identified specimens. There are several discrepancies between both accounts. In the absence of any other published descriptions, the following account is summarized from MacKay (1959)MacKay (1959):
MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338..
Mature larva approximately 10-15 mm in length; head yellowish brown; prothoracic shieldprothoracic shield:
a sclerotized plate on the dorsal surface of the prothorax 
similarly colored with with dark brown to black on the posteriorposterior:
after, to the rear, toward anal end 
and laterallateral:
to the side
margin; body yellowish green to pale brown; anal fork present with 5-8 teeth; SV group on A1, 2, 7, 8, 9 numbering 3:3:3:2:2.
Adults can be confused with those of Lobesia botrana, which was discovered in California in 2008-2009. Adults of P. viteana and L. botrana cannot be separated by wing pattern; a genitalic dissection is necessary to confirm identity.
Paralobesia viteana can be separated from other species of Paralobesia and from Lobesia botrana by the protrusion of a large paintbrush-like lobe extending from the base of the cuculluscucullus:
the distal portion of the male valva in males. Females are separated from other species of Paralobesia by the shape of the shape of the sterigmasterigma:
the sclerotized region surrounding the female ostium bursae (Royals et al. 2019Royals et al. 2019:
Royals, H. R., J-F. Landry, T. M. Gilligan. 2019. Paralobesia (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), a systematic revision. Memoirs of the Lepidopterists#39; Society, No. 6. Washington, D.C. 149 pp.).
No morphological characters have been identified to reliably separate the larvae of Paralobesia and Lobesia (but see comments under "Larval Morphology"). Should P. viteana be introduced to the West Coast, or L. botrana reintroduced to the U.S., molecular diagnostics may be required to identify larvae found on grape.
The following account is summarized from Witzgall et al. (2000) and references therein.
Paralobesia viteana completes 2-4 generations per year, depending on location. Adults of the various generations are present March to August.
Females lay eggs on individual grapes, blossoms, and stems. Larvae of the first generation feed on blossoms or small berries, often webbing together entire clusters. Larvae of subsequent generations tunnel into the berries and feed inside, also webbing together clusters. Mature larvae exit the clusters and pupate in a cresent-shaped fold cut into a leaf. Larvae of the last generation may also drop to the ground and pupate in leaf litter. Overwintering occurs in the pupal stage.
Grape (Vitis sp.) is the preferred larval host, although several secondary hosts have been documented. This species is the primary lepidopteran pest of grapes in eastern North America.
| Host plant | Host plant family | Reference(s) |
| gall | Galls | MacKay 1959MacKay 1959: MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338. |
| Amorpha sp. | Fabaceae | Fernald 1882aFernald 1882a: Fernald, C. H. 1882a. A synonymical catalogue of the described Tortricidae of North America, north of Mexico. Transactions of the American Entomological Society. 10: 1-64. |
| Sassafras sp. | Lauraceae | Fernald 1882aFernald 1882a: Fernald, C. H. 1882a. A synonymical catalogue of the described Tortricidae of North America, north of Mexico. Transactions of the American Entomological Society. 10: 1-64. |
| Rubus sp. | Rosaceae | Fernald 1882aFernald 1882a: Fernald, C. H. 1882a. A synonymical catalogue of the described Tortricidae of North America, north of Mexico. Transactions of the American Entomological Society. 10: 1-64. |
| Vitis riparia | Vitaceae | Hoffman et al. 1992Hoffman et al. 1992: Hoffman, C. J., Dennehy, T. J., Nyrop, J. P. 1992. Phenology, monitoring, and control decision components of the grape berry moth (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) risk assessment program in New York. Journal of Economic Entomology. 85: 2218-2227. |
| Vitis sp. | Vitaceae | Kearfott 1904Kearfott 1904: Kearfott, W. D. 1904. North America Tortricidae. Transactions of the American Entomological Society. 30: 287-299.; Ingerson 1920Ingerson 1920: Ingerson, H. G. 1920. Control of the grape-berry moth in northern Ohio. United States. Department of Agriculture Bulletin 837. 26 pp.; Heinrich 1926Heinrich 1926: Heinrich, C. 1926. Revision of the North American moths of the subfamilies Laspeyresiinae and Olethreutinae. Bulletin of the United States National Museum. 132: 1-216.; Petit 1933Petit 1933: Petit, R. H. 1933. The principal grape insects of Michigan. Spec. Bull. 239. Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station, East Lansing, Michigan. 18 pp.; MacKay 1959MacKay 1959: MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338.; Still 1962Still 1962: Still, G. W. 1962. Cultural control of the grape berry moth. USDA Agric. Inform. Bull. No. 256.; Clark & Dennehy 1988 |
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Paralobesia viteana is widespread in grape-growing regions of eastern North America. It has also been recently recorded from vineyards in western Colorado. Historical records from Utah (MacKay 1959MacKay 1959:
MacKay, M. R. 1959. Larvae of the North American Olethreutidae (Lepidoptera). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 10: 1-338.) are questionable.
This species has not been reported from California or the grape-growing regions of the Pacific Northwest.
