LepidopteraGracillariidae

Phyllonorycter corylifoliella

This record describes Phyllonorycter corylifoliella (species). Recorded family: Gracillariidae. Recorded order: Lepidoptera.

Identification and Appearance

Phyllonorycter corylifoliella - Phyllonorycter corylifoliella

Wingspan 8 to 9 mm. The orangey coloured adult is weakly marked in comparison to some of its congeners. The larva mines the leaves of Hawthorn (and also on Apple, Cherry and others), creating an upper-surface mine, usually over the midrib or vein; the mine is rounded in shape and flecked with blackish-brown frass when mature. The firethorn leaf miner Phyllonorycter leucographella can also cause upper-surface mines on various species in Rosaceae, but without the blackish frass grains. Adults are at large in May and again in July/August. Slightly unusually among Phyllonorycters , this species feeds on a fairly wide range of foodplants. Most other British species, apart from P. leucographella , are specific to one species (or at least genus) of foodplant. The mine is also unusual, in that it is found on the upperside of the leaf. Typical foodplants are Hawthorn ( Crataegus ), Apple ( Malus ) and various Sorbus species such as Mountain Ash. The mine can be found in July and September to October. The species is widely scattered throughout the British Isles. In the Butterfly Conservation’s Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as common. http://www.leafmines.co.uk/html/Lepidoptera/P.corylifoliella.htm https://bladmineerders.nl/parasites/animalia/arthropoda/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/gracillarioidea/gracillariidae/lithocolletinae/phyllonorycter/phyllonorycter-corylifoliella/#:~:text=Contrary%20to%20Ph.,on%20top%20of%20a%20vein.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Gracillariidae
Genus: Phyllonorycter

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

Habitat and Range

Habitat

Found in various habitats.

Seasonal Activity

Adults are at large in May and again in July/August.

Diet and Behavior

Life History

Slightly unusually among

Additional species information

Recorded status

The species is widely scattered throughout the British Isles. In the Butterfly Conservation’s Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as common.

About Butterflies and Moths: the wider group

Order-level background for Lepidoptera, the group containing Phyllonorycter corylifoliella. 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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