Gracillariidae

15.092 Poplar Maze-miner Phyllocnistis unipunctella (Stephens, 1834)

Common

Similar species:

Forewing: 3.5 to 4mm

Habitats: Wherever Black Poplar and its hybrids are found.

Habits: The moth may have two to four generations depending on the climate.

Foodplant: The larva forms a very long, broad gallery without visible frass that loops over the upper surface of a leaf without crossing itself. It is found on Black Poplar, its variation italica and Grey Poplar. It is also occasionally found on Balsam Poplar and Western Balsam Poplar (Black Cottonwood). The mine widens slightly at the leaf margin where it ends with the margin folding over the mine. The mine resembles the mucus trail of a small snail. It pupates under a silk membrane at the leaf edge which is folded back on to the leaf surface almost covering the spinning.