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Digital Guide to Moth Identification

Gracillariidae
33a0194 – 0625   Caloptilia porphyretica (Braun, 1923)

© Tim Reichard
Distribution: Pest in commercial highbush blueberries in NJ (Barry et al. 2010).
Larva and
Host Plants:
Rhododendron (Braun 1923), Vaccinium corymbosum (Highbush Blueberry) (Barry et al. 2010).
Description/
Field Marks:
Face head and base of thorax purple. Forewings purple with base of dorsum and the costal area yellow. See Braun (1923).
Similar Species:
  • Caloptilia superbifrontella (Clemens, 1860) "lack[s] the deep brilliancy of the purple color of porphyretica" (Braun, 1923). The head and and base of thorax yellow.
  • Pinned specimens of related species. (Hint: select View by Region on the related species page.)
Synonymy:
  • porphyretica (Braun, 1923) (Gracilaria) - MONA 1983: 0625
      Type locality: Balsam, NC.
  • References
    • Barcode of Life (BOLD) - Caution: DNA barcode provides evidence of relatedness, not proof of identification, and some BOLD specimens shown may not be sequenced.
    • Barry J.D., C.R. Rodriguez-Saona, D.F. Polk, A. Zhang, 2010. Seasonal abundance, life history, and parasitism of Caloptilia porphyretica (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae), a leafminer of highbush blueberry. Journal of Economic Entomology, 103(2): 284-291.
    • Braun, A.F., 1923. Microlepidoptera: Notes and New Species. Transactions of the American Entomological Society, 49(2): 122.
    • Hall et al., 2021. The Moths of North Carolina - website (identification, habitats and life history)
    • Species Page at BugGuide.Net
    • Species Page at Mass Moths
    Caloptilia porphyretica
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