Sphaeroderma akebia Ohno, 1964

Fig. 14 A – C

Host plant.

Lardizabalaceae: Akebia trifoliata (Thunb.), A. quinata Decne.

Leaf mine.

Upper-layer linear mine on mature leaf (Fig. 14 B, C). The mine is wider than the larval width, having dead ends and branches. Frass is granular and minute, deposited linearly in two rows along both sides of the mine, and inner space between the frass lines is colored darker against the outer space. The mining larva is found from late autumn to early winter. The fully grown larva exits the mined leaf in early winter, falls to the ground, and pupates underground. The pupa hibernates underground, and the adult emerges the next spring.

Material examined.

• 3 adults, Shimoike Lake, Tsuruoka, Yamagata Pref., 15-XI-2014 (as larva on Akebia trifoliata), emerged on 7-V-2015 (Fig. 14 A – C) ; • 2 adults, Aibano, Takashima, Shiga Pref., 13-XII-1998 (as larva on Akebia trifoliata), emerged on 8-IV-1999 .