About Phyllonorycter lucetiella (Clemens, 1859)
Phyllonorycter lucetiella is a moth species that belongs to the family Gracillariidae. This species is found in Québec, Canada, and across multiple states in the United States: Illinois, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Vermont, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. The wingspan of adult moths ranges from 6 to 7 millimeters. The larvae of this species feed on Ostrya virginiana and various species in the genus Tilia, which includes Tilia americana, Tilia x vulgaris and Tilia × europaea. Larvae create mines inside the leaves of their host plants. The leaf mine produced by this species is a tentiform mine located on the underside of the leaf. Because the larvae remove green parenchyma tissue from the upper wall of the mine, the mine is clearly visible from the upperside of the leaf. The mine is shaped like a rectangle, often almost square, positioned between two leaf veins, and does not develop wrinkles. Once the mine is fully complete, it becomes transparent, making the pupa (housed inside an oval cocoon) clearly visible through the mine tissue.
