Adaina montanus
Encyclopedia
Adaina montanus is a moth
of the Pterophoridae family. It is found in North America
, including south-eastern Canada
and the north-eastern United States
.
The wingspan
is about 16 mm. The head is white and the antennae are faintly dotted above with brownish. The thorax, abdomen and legs are snow white, although the fore and middle legs are brownish on the inner side. The forewings are snow white, sprinkled with ferruginous-brown scales, especially on the outer half of the costa. A spot of these scales is found before the base of the fissure and runs obliquely to a darker spot on the costa, which is nearly connected by a dark shade with another brown costal spot near the apex. There is a dark-brown fine streak on the outer half of the costa of the second lobe extending through the fringe under the apex. All of the rest of the fringe is snow white. The hindwings are dusted with cinereous brown.
Adults have been recorded in July.
The larvae feed on Xanthium strumarium canadense
and Symphyotrichum novi-belgii
. Young larvae are found on the underside of the leaves of their host plant. Later, they can also be found on the upperside. Young larvae eat out the parenchyma, leaving the epidermis. First instar larvae are entirely white, except for the claws and mandibles. Later instars are pale green, although the eighth and ninth rings are yellow. When full-grown, the larvae are pale pea green, with a paler head and a dorsal stripe consisting of three white lines. The seventh, eighth and ninth rings yellow. Pupation takes place in a light green pupa, although some have a reddish stripe along the dorsal part of the abdomen.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Pterophoridae family. It is found in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, including south-eastern Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and the north-eastern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is about 16 mm. The head is white and the antennae are faintly dotted above with brownish. The thorax, abdomen and legs are snow white, although the fore and middle legs are brownish on the inner side. The forewings are snow white, sprinkled with ferruginous-brown scales, especially on the outer half of the costa. A spot of these scales is found before the base of the fissure and runs obliquely to a darker spot on the costa, which is nearly connected by a dark shade with another brown costal spot near the apex. There is a dark-brown fine streak on the outer half of the costa of the second lobe extending through the fringe under the apex. All of the rest of the fringe is snow white. The hindwings are dusted with cinereous brown.
Adults have been recorded in July.
The larvae feed on Xanthium strumarium canadense
Xanthium strumarium
Xanthium strumarium is a species of annual plants belonging to the Asteraceae family...
and Symphyotrichum novi-belgii
Symphyotrichum novi-belgii
Symphyotrichum novi-belgii also known as New York Aster is the type species for Symphyotrichum, a genus of the family Asteraceae whose species were once considered to be Asters and an ornamental plant native to Canada and the United States....
. Young larvae are found on the underside of the leaves of their host plant. Later, they can also be found on the upperside. Young larvae eat out the parenchyma, leaving the epidermis. First instar larvae are entirely white, except for the claws and mandibles. Later instars are pale green, although the eighth and ninth rings are yellow. When full-grown, the larvae are pale pea green, with a paler head and a dorsal stripe consisting of three white lines. The seventh, eighth and ninth rings yellow. Pupation takes place in a light green pupa, although some have a reddish stripe along the dorsal part of the abdomen.