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Prodoxus coloradensis Riley

Olle Pellmyr
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Containing group: Prodoxus

Adult Characteristics

Wing expanse 8-14 mm. Dorsum dark brown, with some white scales. Forewing mostly dark brown with numerous white bands and patches, creating a checkerspot appearance. Hindwings ranging light to medium gray.

Comparison with Similar Species

Very similar to Prodoxus phylloryctus, which coexists with it in some areas. Adults have some white scales on the dorsum (absent in phylloryctus), forewing scales are ovoid and broader in the outher portion (parallel-sided in phylloryctus), and the dorsoventral vincular lobes in the male genitalia tend to be quadrate (rounded in phylloryctus).

Host, Oviposition, and Larval Feeding Habits

Reported from numerous fleshy-fruited yuccas and two capsular-fruited yuccas (Davis 1967). The two latter have been challenged by Frack (1982) as likely cases of incorrect labelling. Larvae mine inside all parts of the floral rachis, and pupate just below the surface.

Geographic Distribution

Throughout the range of fleshy-fruited yuccas in the USA, from the California Mojave desert in the west to central Texas in the east, and from southern Colorado to the U.S.-Mexican border.

Habitat

In shrubby desert or open oak-pine forest with fleshy-fruited yuccas.

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Shrubby desert with Y. baccata in Dona Ana Co., New Mexico, and higher-elevation site in San Juan Co., Colorado, USA.

Type

Holotype in USNM.

References

Davis, D.R. 1967. A revision of the moths of the subfamily Prodoxinae (Lepidoptera: Incurvariidae). U.S. Nat. Hist. Mus., Bull. 255:1-170. Smiths. Contrib. Zool. 524:1-88.

Frack, D.C. 1982. A systematic study of prodoxine moths (Adelidae: Prodoxinae) and their hosts (Agavaceae), with descriptions of the subfamilies of Adelidae (s. lat.). M.S. thesis, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA.

Title Illustrations
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Scientific Name Prodoxus coloradensis
Location Riverside Co., California, USA
Specimen Condition Dead Specimen
Sex Male
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
Copyright © 1996
Scientific Name Prodoxus coloradensis
Location Riverside Co., California, USA
Specimen Condition Dead Specimen
Sex Female
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
Copyright © 1996
About This Page


University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, USA

Page: Tree of Life Prodoxus coloradensis Riley. Authored by Olle Pellmyr. The TEXT of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0. Note that images and other media featured on this page are each governed by their own license, and they may or may not be available for reuse. Click on an image or a media link to access the media data window, which provides the relevant licensing information. For the general terms and conditions of ToL material reuse and redistribution, please see the Tree of Life Copyright Policies.

Citing this page:

Pellmyr, Olle. 1996. Prodoxus coloradensis Riley. Version 01 January 1996 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Prodoxus_coloradensis/12426/1996.01.01 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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