Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Decantha boreasella (Chambers, 1873)
Oecophora boreasella Chambers, 1873
Borkhausenia boreasella
Oecophora borkhausenii of authors not Zeller, 1839
* phylogenetic sequence #420037
Explanation of Names
Decantha borkhausenii (Zeller, 1839) is a European species formerly treated as a senior synonym of Decantha boreasella by Busck (1904), Dyar (1904), Forbes (1923) and others.
Identification
Head: Dark brown, face smooth; two tufts on top of head. Palpi reddish-brown, curved up over head, underside scaled, last segment brown and white.
Antenna: Brown with white rings.
Thorax: Golden yellow, slightly scaled. Sides brown, collar has line of brown.
Wings: Dark brown background, with 4 large golden patches outlined with white on each side and connecting to lower center patch. Fringe long, golden yellow. Hindwings brown. Fringe yellowish-brown.
Legs: Dark brown with white tips on each segment.
Abdomen: Grayish-brown.
Range
Only found east of the Rockies
MA south to FL and west to AR
(1)
Lectotype as
Oecophora boreasella male by Chambers, 1873. #189; MCZ#1553. Locality: Kentucky. In Museum of Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, Mass. Lectotype designated by Hodges in 1974.
(1)Habitat
Forests, preferring pine.
Season
May to August, earlier in the south.
Food
Larvae possibly feed on fungus in dead wood.
(2)Life Cycle
Caterpillar translucent white, with yellow-brown head and cervical shield. Found under pine bark.
Remarks
Decantha boreasella may turn out to be a complex of more than one species. There are currently three BINs at BOLD with specimens identified as boreasella,
BOLD:AAB6765,
BOLD:ADH4810 and
BOLD:AAB6766 and they are each other's nearest neighbors. All are from east from TX and OK and east. - Steve Nanz, 12/26/2018
See Also
Decantha stecia is smaller, wing length 3-3.5mm. (No other member of the genus are found east of the Rockies.)
(1)
Epicallima argenticinctella has no brown. It is entirely orange and yellow.
Print References
Chambers, V.T. 1873. Micro-Lepidoptera. The Canadian Entomologist 5(10):
189-190
Clarke, J.F.G. 1941. Revision of the North American moths of the family Oecophoridae, with descriptions of new genera and species. Proceedings of the United States National Museum 90(3107):
242-243 (3)
Forbes, 1923, 179 & 248
(4)
Hodges, R.W. 1974. Moths of America North of Mexico, Fascicle 6.2: 104, pl.7.2-4
(1)
