Clepsis virescana

Status

NATIVE

PORT INTERCEPT | DOMESTIC SURVEY

Taxonomy

Clepsis virescana (Clemens) (Tortricidae: Tortricinae: Archipini)

Synonyms: glaucana (Lozotaenia), sescuplana (Tortrix)

Subspecies: C. virescana salebrosa (Mexico)

Adult Recognition

FWL: 6.0–9.0 mm

Forewing color varies from grayish brown to yellow brown. Wing pattern is uniform across most individuals, with a dark costal spot and poorly-defined median fascia. Males have a forewing costal fold.

Male genitalia are characterized by a finger-like uncus; an incomplete, spined transtilla; two long cornuti in the aedeagus; and a small membranous lobe on the apex of the valva. Female genitalia are characterized by a straight ductus bursae without a cestum and a long, thornlike signum in the corpus bursae.

Larval Morphology

Although the larva of Clepsis virescana has not been described, it is assumed to be morphologically similar to larvae of other Clepsis species such as C. peritana and C. fucana.

Similar Species

Clepsis fucana, C. penetralis, C. peritana, and C. virescana are all similar in appearance. Clepsis fucana is generally larger than the other three species and is found only on the West Coast. C. penetralis has only been recorded from Colorado, Utah, and Vermont, although it may be misidentified in collections making its true distribution unknown. Clepsis peritana is the most commonly collected Clepsis, and it can be found throughout the United States and southern Canada. Clepsis virescana is generally larger than C. peritana, and males possess a forewing costal fold. The following table lists diagnostic features that can be used to separate these four Clepsis species.

Species	FWL	Male forewing costal fold	Male valva membranous lobe	Female ductus bursae	Female signum	Distribution
fucana	6.5–10.5 mm	absent	present as small lobe	straight	absent	West Coast
penetralis	6.0–7.5 mm	absent	present as moderate lobe	weakly twisted	absent	Unknown; recorded from Colorado, Utah, and Vermont
peritana	4.5–7.5 mm	absent	absent; entire apex is membranous	tightly coiled	absent	United States and southern Canada
virescana	6.0–9.0 mm	present	present as small lobe	straight	present	United States and southern Canada

 

Distribution

Clepsis virescana is widespread throughout North America, from Alaska, northern Ontario, and Nova Scotia south to southern California, Mexico, and Georgia.

Biology

Little has been reported on the life history of this species. Adult capture records indicate that Clepsis virescana is bivoltine in central California. Powell (1964b)Powell (1964b):
Powell, J. A. 1964b. Biological and taxonomic studies on tortricine moths, with reference to the species in California. University of California Publications in Entomology. Vol. 32. 317 pp. reared larvae on fresh and decaying leaves of Prunus and Rosa and hypothesized that C. virescana may have feeding habits similar to those of C. peritana. In the laboratory, larvae completed development in September and October.

The only documented wild host is western chokecherry (Prunus virginiana var. demissa), although Powell and Opler (2009)Powell and Opler (2009):
Powell, J. A., Opler, P. A. 2009. Moths of western North America. University of California Press, Berkeley. 369 pp. state that the larvae will feed on various soft-leaf plants and decaying leaves.

Plant Associations

View full screen host table here

Links

Additional photos and a distribution map of this species in North America are available at Moth Photographers Group.