Choristoneura houstonana (Grote) (Tortricidae: Tortricinae: Archipini)
Common name: juniper budworm moth
Synonyms: retana (Tortrix)
Note: Powell and Obraztsov (1977) described the monotypic genus Cudonigera to accommodate this species, but Dombroskie and Sperling (2013)Dombroskie and Sperling (2013):
Dombroskie, J. J., Sperling, F. A. H. 2013. Phylogeny of the tribe Archipini (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae: Tortricinae) and evolutionary correlates of novel secondary sexual structures. Zootaxa. 3729: 1-62. synonymized Cudonigera with Choristoneura.
FWL: 7.5–11 mm
Head more smoothly scaled than in other species of Choristoneura, typically red orange. Male without costal fold. Forewing with ground color red to warm brown, with fasciae composed of large, blotch-like paler patches, giving the appearance of a raised, spotty profile; hindwing gray.
Male genitalia are characterized by tegumen with broad shoulders; short, wide uncus; and small valvae compared to other species of Choristoneura. Female genitalia are characterized by a sclerotized hood-like structure over the papillae anales, a sickle-shaped signum, and the presence of a cestum.
The following account is summarized from Heinrichs (1971)Heinrichs (1971):
Heinrichs, E. A. 1971. External morphology of larvae of Choristoneura houstonana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist. 103(1): 12-17. and Powell and Obraztsov (1977)Powell and Obraztsov (1977):
Powell, J.A., Obraztsov, N. S. 1977. Cudonigera: a new genus for moths formerly assigned to Choristoneura houstonana (Tortricidae). Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society. 31(2): 119-123..
Mature instar 15–21 mm in length. Head reddish brown; prothoracic shield yellowish brown bordered laterally and posteriorly with a dark brown or black band; thoracic legs brown; body olive green. Chaetotaxy typical for Archipini: meso- and metathorax with SV group bearing one seta; SV groups on A1, 2, 7, 8, 9 numbering 3:3:2:2:2; anal fork well-developed.
Choristoneura houstonana is similar to several species of Choristoneura and Archips but can be usually separated by the distinctive “raised” blotches along the fasciae of the forewing.
Choristoneura houstonana is broadly distributed in the southeast, south central, and southwestern United States. It is especially common in pinyon-juniper woodlands of Texas and Oklahoma. A disjunct population occurs in coastal regions of the northeastern United States, from New Jersey to Cape Cod.
The following account is summarized from Heinrichs and Thompson (1968)Heinrichs and Thompson (1968):
Heinrichs, E. A., Thompson, H. E. 1968. The biology of Choristoneura houstonana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), a pest of Juniperus species. Canadian Entomologist. 100(7): 750-763..
In Kansas, there is a single generation per year. Eggs are laid singly in July to early August in crevices of the host plant where two shoots meet. Females lay an average of about 100 eggs. The oviposition period lasts up to eight days. Eggs hatch 8 to 12 days later and undergo 8 to 11 instars during development. Upon hatching, larvae spin a small silken nest between two shoots and chew into the base of a leaf. Larvae feed by mining leaves of the host plant from the base up. Larvae will mine multiple leaves throughout their development. Overwintering occurs as a fourth instar larva with feeding activity ceasing around September. Larvae resume feeding in April or May and switch to external feeding rather than mining by the fifth instar by tying together shoots with silk and feeding within this nest. Pupation occurs in late June to July in a silken tunnel constructed by the larva in the constructed nest. Adults eclose and mate in late July and August.
Choristoneura houstonana is a specialist on Juniperus spp. It has been recorded once on Platycladus orientalis growing near an infested Juniperus virginiana tree.
View full screen host table here
Authors: KA Austin, TM Gilligan, ME Epstein
Content last updated May 2025
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