Phyllonorycter trifasciella

Phyllonorycter trifasciella

Alternative names
Banded Honeysuckle Leaf-miner
Honeysuckle Midget
Description

Wingspan 7-8 mm. This species has a banded patterning of chestnut, off white and dark browns.  The larva mines the leaves of Honeysuckle, and occasionally Snowberry or Himalayan Honeysuckle, in a small tentiform mine that contracts diagonally causing the leaf to roll up.  There is no cocoon, and the pupal cremaster has a distinctive shape wih two long hooks at the tip and two lateral processes.

Similar Species

Phyllonorycter emberizaepennella mines can be similar, but have different pupa and no cocoon

Identification difficulty

Adult Leafmine

Recording advice

Photograph leaf mine and pupa; note host species

Habitat

Woodland and hedgerows.

When to see it

This species is unusual among Phyllonorycter in having three generations, with adults on the wing in November, as well as the usual May and August periods.

Life History

The foodplant is Honeysuckle, though occasionally Snowberry and Himalayan Honeysuckle are used. The mine is quite distinctive, occupying a large part of a leaf and causing it to fold and twist into a conical shape. The mines can be quite abundant where it is found.

UK Status

A common and widespread species throughout the British Isles. In the Butterfly Conservation’s Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as common.

VC55 Status

Uncommon or under recorded in Leicestershire and Rutland. L&R Moth Group status = D (rare or rarely recorded)

Reference
15.083 BF361

Leicestershire & Rutland Map

MAP KEY:

Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2025+ | 2020-2024 | pre-2020

UK Map

Additional images

All NatureSpot records