Pandemis pyrusana

Status

NATIVE

DOMESTIC SURVEY

Taxonomy

Pandemis pyrusana (Kearfott) (Tortricidae: Tortricinae: Archipini)

Common names: apple Pandemis

Synonyms: pyrana (Pandemis)

Adult Recognition

FWL: 8.0–12.5 mm (male); 9.5–14.0 mm (female)

Adults are golden brown with fasciate markings and white hindwings. Males lack a forewing costal fold and have notched antennae.

Male genitalia are characterized by a broad, quadrate uncus; large, circular valvae; and a pistol-shaped phallus. Female genitalia are characterized by a ductus bursae with a lightly sclerotized portion near the ostium and a short, slightly curved, dagger-like signum with a moderate basal plate in the corpus bursae. 

Larval Morphology

Young larvae were examined by MacKay (1962a)MacKay (1962a):
MacKay, M. R. 1962a. Larvae of the North American Tortricinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 28: 1-182. but not described. Larvae are presumably similar to other species of Nearctic Pandemis such as P. limitata.

Similar Species

Pandemis pyrusana is similar to P. limitata and P. canadana, and the three species are not easily separated. A combination of geographic distribution and wing color can assist in identification (see below). In the Pacific Northwest and central Rocky Mountains all three species are present and a reliable species-level identification is difficult or impossible based solely on morphology.

The following table lists a combination of wing color and geographic distribution that can be used to identify many Pandemis individuals collected in the United States.

Species	Forewing color	Hindwing color	Sex scales on male 2nd abd. segment	Distribution
canadana	medium to dark brown	all gray	present	Maine, Colorado, Wyoming, Southern Canada
cerasana	straw to light brown	grayish brown	present	Pacific Northwest, British Columbia; Europe and Asia
heparana	medium brown	light to medium grayish brown	absent	Pacific Northwest, British Columbia; Europe and Asia
lamprosana	tan to light brown	white to light gray	absent	Northeastern United States, southern Quebec and Ontario
limitata	straw to medium brown	gray and white	present	Eastern United States and southern Canada; generally absent in the United States west of the Rocky Mtns.
pyrusana	straw to medium brown	all white	present	Rocky Mtns. west to California, southern Alberta and British Columbia

 

MacKay (1962a)MacKay (1962a):
MacKay, M. R. 1962a. Larvae of the North American Tortricinae (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Canadian Entomologist, Supplement 28: 1-182. examined several species of Nearctic Pandemis and could find no species-specific larval characters. Diagnostic characters for the genus include: SD2 on A1-8 on same pinaculum as SD1; L1 and L2 anterior to spiracle on A2-8; SV group on A1,2,7,8,9 usually 3:3:3:2:2; D2s on A8 as far apart as D1s; D1 on A9 on its own pinaculum; anal setae very long; anal comb with 6–8 teeth.

Distribution

Pandemis pyrusana is distributed from Alberta west to British Columbia, south to Idaho, Utah, Colorado, and California.

Biology

The following account is summarized from Newcomer and Carlson 1952.

Pandemis pyrusana completes one or two generations per year. Adults are present in the coastal areas of California from May to July and again in September to November.

Females deposit eggs in masses on the upper surfaces of leaves and on fruit. Early instar larvae of the first (summer) generation feed under a shelter constructed along the mid-rib of a leaf. Later instars feed on foliage in various locations on the host and may cause economic damage by feeding between clusters of fruit. Larvae of the second generation overwinter in shelters at the base of trees or under bark. In the spring they begin feeding on terminal leaves and pupate in April or May inside a folded leaf.

Larvae of P. pyrusana have been recorded feeding on the following host plants.

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.