chillcotti or pinifoliella

Hodges#1799 and Hodges#1840

We're adding this page since there seems to be great confusion concerning the two species and we likely have both species on both pages here on BugGuide. E. chillcotti is said to feed on Longleaf Pine, and if true then all of the northern records we have should actually be placed in E. pinifoliella.

(Steve also points out here that we may also get some specimens of Exoteleia burkei, a western species, which was collected in Mississippi.)

Ken Childs got the following information from Terry Harrison: "In the Original Description of E. chillcotti, Freeman says, “The species resembles E. pinifoliella Chamb., but differs in having broader, more striated, whitish fascia; reduced golden-brown fascia..." The head and thorax are described as being white.

Given that, then one might suppose that the moth 629268 could be E. chillcotti, whereas 802657 would answer to E. pinifoliella. Chambers, in his description of the latter species, describes the head and thorax as being predominantly white, but in the moth just referenced, I would call them gray; and the specimens of E. pinifoliella shown on the BOLD taxonomy browser have the head and thorax gray. So, maybe that is the best way to tell the two apart on sight ID."

Charley has one image 1073603 examined and confirmed by Jean-François Landry as E. pinifoliella. That is the one image on these two pages that we are certain of. There is apparently even some confusion at this time with the images on BOLD. So it seems best to place all the images here until things are sorted out.

We will put both pages under this one so all the images are in one place without having to move all the individual images and send out a flurry of MOVED emails. That can always be done later when we know more.