Kingdom Animalia Class Insecta Family Nepticulidae Scientific name Stigmella sorbi | Phylum Arthropoda Order Lepidoptera Genus Stigmella Rank Species | |
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Similar Stigmella lemniscella, Stigmella myrtillella, Stigmella ruficapitella, Stigmella confusella, Stigmella alnetella | ||
Caterpillar of stigmella sorbi
Stigmella sorbi is a moth of the Nepticulidae family. It is found in most of Europe (except Iceland, Portugal, Belgium and the western part of the Balkan Peninsula), east to the eastern part of the Palearctic ecozone.
The wingspan is 6–7 mm. Adults are on wing in May.
The larvae feed on Amelanchier, Cotoneaster simonsii, Malus domestica, Sorbus aucuparia and Sorbus intermedia. They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine starts as a slender winding corridor, the second part of which is almost stuffed with frass. The corridor then widens into a blotch with dispersed frass. In large leaves this blotch may be almost circular. Normally, the midrib is not crossed, but the mine can occupy the major part of a leaflet. There are often several mines in a leaf.