Eucosmophora pouteriae

Eucosmophora pouteriae is a moth of the family Gracillariidae. It is known from Costa Rica.[1]

Eucosmophora pouteriae
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Gracillariidae
Genus: Eucosmophora
Species:
E. pouteriae
Binomial name
Eucosmophora pouteriae
Davis & Wagner, 2005

The length of the forewings is 3.2–3.6 mm for males and 3.7 mm for females.[2]

The larvae feed on Pouteria campechiana. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The early mine is serpentine, yellow-tan, with a dark central frass line. The lower surface of the blotch mine is yellow-brown, and appears to be made well into the parenchyma as it is inconspicuous from both leaf surfaces initially. Mines are often formed close to the midrib. The blotch runs between adjacent lateral veins, but may cross over the veins when situated peripherally on the lamina. Tissue-feeding instars remove patches of parenchyma to the upper leaf surface. The cocoon is chocolate brown.

Etymology

The specific name is derived from the generic name, Pouteria, of the only recorded larval host.

References
  1. Global Taxonomic Database of Gracillariidae (Lepidoptera)
  2. Biology and systematics of the neotropical leafminer genus Eucosmophora (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae)


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