Phyllonorycter manzanita (Braun, 1925)

Eiseman, Charles S. & Davis, Donald R., 2020, Wrong side of the leaf: assigning some Lithocolletinae species (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) to their proper genera, Zootaxa 4751 (2), pp. 201-237 : 221-223

Phyllonorycter manzanita (Braun, 1925)

( Figs. 50–52 )

Lithocolletis manzanita Braun 1925: 147 . Phyllonorycter manzanita (Braun) — Davis 1983: 10.

Leaf mine. A “grayish blotch, with the upper epidermis loosened and elevated, but at no stage wrinkled, producing a somewhat inflated mine in which most of the parenchyma is consumed” ( Braun 1925a).

Hosts. Ericaceae : Arctostaphylos columbiana Piper , A. glandulosa Eastw. , A. glauca Lindl. , A. manzanita Parry , A. patula Greene , A. pungens Kunth , A. virgata Eastw. , A. viscida Parry , Xylococcus bicolor Nutt. (not all records confirmed by rearing; see Review).

Distribution. USA: CA; possibly AZ (see below).

Review. The type specimen emerged on 30 March from a mine on Arctostaphylos manzanita collected on 6 March at Mt. Wilson in California ( Braun 1925a). Comstock & Henne (1968) listed A. glauca as a host of this moth. Gates et al. (2002) listed “ Phyllonorycter ?manzanitae Braun” as forming an upper- or lower-surface blotch mine on A. columbiana , and P. “ manzanitae ” [no question mark] on A. virgata , both in California. We have seen uppersurface Phyllonorycter mines in California on A. glandulosa , A. glauca , A. patula ( Fig. 50 ), and A. viscida , and in Arizona on A. pungens ( Fig. 51 ). Similar mines have been photographed on the related shrub Xylococcus bicolor in California ( Clark 2019).

Comments. Powell & Opler (2009) stated that two Phyllonorycter species are found on Arbutus menziesii Pursh , “one an upperside, one a lowerside miner, and one or more species on manzanita ( Arctostaphylos ): P. arbutusella (Braun) ... appears to be the lowerside miner, but whether it or the upperside species is the same as P. manzanita ... is unknown.” Braun (1908) described P. arbutusella from two specimens reared from Arbutus menziesii in San Mateo Co. , California, but she did not describe the leaf mine.

Figures

FIGURES 50–52. Phyllonorycter manzanita. 50: Upper-surface leaf mine, presumably of this species, on Arctostaphylos patula in California; 51: Same, on A. pungens in Arizona; 52: Head and forewing illustration.