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Digital Guide to Moth Identification

Cosmopterigidae 59a0363 – 1482   Cosmopterix lespedezae (Walsingham, 1882)

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[T] - © Ken Childs Large Map & Chart Report Errors About Maps

Distribution: OH, KY, TX, AR, SC - Hodges (1978); MS - Koster (2010). Larva and Host Plants: Lespedeza and Desmodium. Description/ Field Marks: See Koster (2010) Genitalia: See Koster (2010) Similar Species: 1493 Cosmopterix clemensella: "The key in Koster (2010) relies on the clemensella forewing being greyish brown and lespedezae dark brown, which is very subjective and hardly accurate. Otherwise clemensella should have a 4x larger outer dorsal spot than the opposite costal spot (lespedezae is 2-3x). I have also found this to be an unreliable character. The only possible distinguishing character I can find is the middle longitudinal white line is shorter in clemensella." - Steven Whitebread (pers. comm., 4/1/2020). Pinned specimens of related species. (Hint: select View by Region on the related species page.) Synonymy: lespedezae (Walsingham, 1882) (Cosmopteryx) - MONA 1983: 1482; TL: none given [Texas], Hodges (1978).

References (Caution: DNA barcoding at BOLD provides evidence of relatedness, not proof of identification; some BOLD specimens shown may not be sequenced.)

Barcode of Life (BOLD) Hodges, R. W., 1978. Moths of America North of Mexico, Fascicle 6.1, p. 30; pl. 2.38. order or free PDF Koster, J.C., 2010. The genera Cosmopterix Hübner and Pebobs Hodges in the New World with special attention to the Neotropical fauna (Lepidoptera: Cosmopterigidae). Zoologische Mededelingen, 84(10): 251-575. Species Page at BugGuide.Net U.S. National Entomological Collection (USNM) - Holotype ♂

[T] - © Robert L. Zimlich

9mm – © Mississippi Entomological Museum LG – (cc) Miss. Ent. Mus. - Holotype - LG – U.S. Nat'l. Museum

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