mojavella

T. mojavella Pellmyr

Adult Characteristics

Wing expanse 19-24.5 mm. Forewing cream colored, hindwing light brownish gray and a distinctly darker outer section. Male genitalia with aedeagus 1.5-1.8 mm long, 0.030-0.035 mm in cross section; female genitalia with posterior apophyses 6.7-7.0 mm long, corpus bursae with signa 0.55-0.70 mm in diameter.

Comparison with similar species

More cream colored than other species in the complex, yet similar, but readily distinguished from other members of the complex based on genitalic characters. A diagnostic key is provided.

Hosts, oviposition, and larval feeding habits

The species is known from the fleshy-fruited yucca Y. schidigera. Females oviposit into flowers (Pellmyr 1999). Eggs are laid inside the ovary, between the wall and the ovules, generally in the upper portion.The larva feeds on developing seeds. Pupation occurs in a cocoon in the soil.

Geographic distribution

Most of the Mojave desert, from southern Nevada and desert portions in California south to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Habitat

Habitat includes bajadas and lower slopes of open desert. Altitudinal range 300-1450 m.

References


Pellmyr, O. 1999. Systematic revision of the Tegeticula yuccasella complex 
    (Lepidoptera: Prodoxidae) north of Mexico. Systematic Entomology 24:243-271.

Holotype in USNM.

About this page

Olle Pellmyr
E-mail: olle.pellmyr@vanderbilt.edu.
Dept of Biology, Vanderbilt University, Box 1812-B Nashville, TN 37235, USA

Title illustration: Tegeticula mojavella male and female (San Bernardino Co, California).