Acrolepiopsis assectella [Lepidoptera: Acrolepiidae] in Leaf and stem mines of British flies and other insects

The leaf and stem mines of British flies and other insects

(Coleoptera, Diptera, Hymenoptera and Lepidoptera)

by Brian Pitkin, Willem Ellis, Colin Plant and Rob Edmunds

Acrolepiopsis assectella (Zeller, 1839)
[Lepidoptera: Acrolepiidae]

Leek moth

Roeslerstammia assectella Zeller, 1839. Isis: 203.
Lita vigiliella Duponchel, 1842. Hist. Nat. Lep. Suppl. 4: t. 73, fig. 12
Acrolepiopsis assectella (Zeller, 1839).

Leaf-miner / stem-borer: Very variable mine - corridor or blotch, with or without frass (Bladmineerders van Europa).

The larvae mine the leaves at first. In leeks it then bores through them and later enters the middle to feed on the inner leaves. In onion it feeds inside the leaves and can enter the bulb to feed (British leafminers).

Larva: The larvae of moths have a head capsule and chewing mouthparts with opposable mandibles (see video of a gracillarid larva feeding), six thoracic legs and abdominal legs (see examples).

The larva is described by Heppner (1987) and illustrated in British leafminers.

Pupa: The pupae of moths have visible head appendages, wings and legs which lie in sheaths (see examples).

The larva pupates in an open network cocoon, either on the foodplant or close by (UKMoths and British leafminers).

Adult: The adult is illustrated in UKMoths and the Encyclopedia of Life. The species is included in mothdissection.co.uk.

Hosts in Great Britain and Ireland:

Liliaceae
Allium			British leafminers
Allium			UKMoths
Allium	ascalonicum	Shallot	British leafminers
Allium	cepa	Onion	British leafminers
Allium	cepa	Onion	Pitkin & Plant
Allium	porrum	Leek	British leafminers
Allium	porrum	Leek	Pitkin & Plant
Allium	sativum	Garlick	British leafminers

Hosts elsewhere:

Liliaceae
Allium			Belgian Lepidoptera
Allium	cepa	Onion	Bladmineerders van Europa
Allium	fistulosum		Bladmineerders van Europa
Allium	montanum		Bladmineerders van Europa
Allium	porrum	Leek	Bladmineerders van Europa

Time of year - larvae: May - June; August - October (British leafminers).

Time of year - adults: Two generations - June and July, and from October through the winter to early spring (UKMoths).

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: Although it has the potential to be a pest, it is rather scarce and local. It is distributed mainly in the south-east of England, especially around the coast (UKMoths) including Dorset, East Norfolk, East Suffolk, East Sussex, Glamorgan, Kirkudbrightshire, Leicestershire, North Somerset, Stafford, Surrey, West Gloucestershire and West Suffolk (NBN Atlas). Also Cheltenham, East Gloucestershire (British leafminers).

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Austria, Balearic Is., Belarus, Belgium, Corsica, Czech Republic, Danish mainland, Estonia, Finland, French mainland, Germany, Hungary, Italian mainland, Kaliningrad Region, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Norwegian mainland, Portuguese mainland, Romania, Russia - Central, North and Northwest, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Ukraine and Yugoslavia (Fauna Europaea).

NBN Atlas links to known host species:

Allium cepa, Allium fistulosum, Allium porrum, Allium sativum

British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere:

Chalcidoidea
Ageniaspis fuscicollis (Dalman, 1820)	Encyrtidae: Encyrtinae
Trichogramma evanescens Westwood, 1833	Trichogrammatidae: Trichogrammatinae
Ichneumonoidea - Links to species no longer available
Diadromus varicolor Wesmael, 1845	Ichneumonidae: Ichneumoninae
Zaglyptus varipes (Gravenhorst, 1829)	Ichneumonidae: Pimplinae


External links:	Search the internet:
Belgian Lepidoptera Biodiversity Heritage Library Bladmineerders van Europa British leafminers Encyclopedia of Life Fauna Europaea NBN Atlas NHM UK Checklist UKMoths	Find using Google Find using Google Scholar Find images using Google


	Last updated 10-Jul-2019 Brian Pitkin