Canadian Arborvitae Leafminer (Argyrestia canadensis)

Taxonomy

Domain	Eukarya
Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Arthropoda
Subphylum	Hexapoda
Class	Insecta
Subclass	Pterygota
Infraclass	Neoptera
Superorder	Holometabola
Order	Lepidoptera
Superfamily	Yponomeutoidea
Family	Yponomeutidae
Subfamily	Argyresthiinae
Genus	Argyresthia

Scientific Name

Argyresthia canadensis

Common Name

Canadian arborvitae leafminer

Maier, C.T.; Lemmon, C.R.; Fengler, J.M.; Schweitzer, D.F.; Reardon, R.C.; Caterpillars on the Foliage of Conifers in the Northeastern United States. Morgantown, WV. USDA Forest Service. Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. FHTET-2004-01. March 2004. 151 p.

Description

Green body with dark brown head and with central brown patch on prothoracic shield and anal plate. Up to 7 mm.

Food

Northern white-cedar.

Life Cycle

One generation. Nearly full-grown caterpillar overwinters in mined foliage. Mature caterpillar present from April to June.

Comments

The caterpillars of the brown arborvitae leafminer, Coleotechnites thujaella, and three species of Argyresthia mine the foliage of northern white-cedar; sometimes several species will infest the same tree. As its name indicates, the brown arborvitae leafminer is brown, whereas the Argyresthia species are mostly green. Argyresthia aureoargentella and A. canadensis make whitish, spindle-shaped cocoons that are located outside the mine on the foliage. The cocoon of the first species is white, whereas that of the second is mottled with brown (see below). The arborvitae leafminer, A. thuiella, forms its pupa within its foliar mine.