| Marmara arbutiella | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Gracillariidae |
| Genus: | Marmara |
| Species: | M. arbutiella |
| Binomial name | |
| Marmara arbutiella Busck, 1904 | |
Marmara arbutiella is a moth of the family Gracillariidae. It is known from Canada and the United States (Oregon, Washington and California).[1]
The larvae feed on Arbutus menziesii, Arbutus unedo and Arctostaphylos species. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine has the form of a very long, irregular, winding, serpentine mine just under the upper epidermis of the leaf. There are three behaviorally and morphologically distinct larval forms. There are six to eight sap-feeding and two non-feeding, structurally differentiated instars. The early instars are legless sap feeders. The first of the non-feeding instars never issues from the cuticle of the previous (feeding) instar. The second non-feeding stage is a fully legged, with rudimentary feeding structures and a functional spinneret. Upon issuing from the mine, this instar spins a cocoon that is elaborately decorated with clusters pearly bubbles that are extruded from its anus and then individually attached to the exterior of the cocoon.[2]
References
- ↑ Global Taxonomic Database of Gracillariidae (Lepidoptera)
- ↑ Wagner, David L.; Loose, Jennifer L.; Fitzgerald, T. D.; De Benedictis, J. A.; Davis, Donald R. (2000). "A Hidden Past: the Hypermetamorphic Development of Marmara arbutiella (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae)". Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 93 (1): 59–64. doi:10.1603/0013-8746(2000)093[0059:AHPTHD]2.0.CO;2.
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