Pammene trauniana

This record describes Pammene trauniana (species). Recorded family: Tortricidae. Recorded order: Lepidoptera.

Identification and Appearance

Wingspan 10 to 13 mm. Similar to Pammene regiana, but the medio-dorsal blotch of the forewing is pale yellow and subquadrate, its outer edge nearly straight to dorsum near the tornus, and the costal strigulae interspersed with thick wedges of pale yellow ground colour [Bradley]. Hedgerows, scrub and woodland, especially where the larval foodplant, Field Maple, is present. Larvae mine the seeds of Field Maple over-wintering as a pupa in a cocoon. Rare in Britain, though possibly increasing in numbers. In the Butterfly Conservation's Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as Nationally Scarce A.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Tortricidae
Genus: Pammene

Imported taxonomy record. Source availability varies; see the source references and editorial policy below.

Habitat and Range

Habitat

Hedgerows, scrub and woodland, especially where the larval foodplant, Field Maple, is present.

Seasonal Activity

May to July.

Diet and Behavior

Life History

Larvae mine the seeds of Field Maple over-wintering as a pupa in a cocoon.

Additional species information

Recorded status

Rare in Britain, though possibly increasing in numbers. In the Butterfly Conservation's Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as Nationally Scarce A.

About Butterflies and Moths: the wider group

Order-level background for Lepidoptera, the group containing Pammene trauniana. Species-specific details appear above.

Group overview

Lepidoptera includes approximately 180,000 described species of butterflies and moths. Moths outnumber butterflies roughly 10:1. The monarch butterfly's eastern population has declined by more than 80% since the mid-1990s, and the western population by over 95% since the 1980s. The IUCN lists the migratory monarch as Vulnerable.

Ecological role of the group

Butterflies and moths are essential indicators of ecosystem health. As caterpillars, they are a primary food source for birds - a single nest of blue tit chicks requires ~10,000 caterpillars. Adult moths pollinate many night-blooming plants.

Economic and practical significance of the group

Lepidoptera are critical pollinators. In Europe, grassland butterfly species have declined by almost 50% since the early 1990s. In the UK, three-quarters of butterflies are in decline. In the U.S., five butterfly species have gone extinct since 1950, with 29 listed as endangered.

Recorded sources for this group: IUCN Red List, Xerces Society, USFWS, PNAS, WWF. Imported estimates may describe particular regions or reporting periods.

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