Nites grotella

Nites grotella, the hazel leaftier moth, is a moth in the family Depressariidae. It was described by Robinson in 1870.[1] It is found in North America, where it has been recorded from Nova Scotia to New York, as well as in Manitoba and Ontario.[2]

Nites grotella
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Depressariidae
Genus:	Nites
Species:	N. grotella
Binomial name
Nites grotella (Robinson, 1870)
Synonyms
Depressaria grotella Robinson, 1870 Depressaria symmochlota Meyrick, 1918

The wingspan is 20–23 mm. The forewings are greyish-ochreous or light fuscous, with a broad costal streak from the base to three-fourth, suffusedly mixed with white. The base of the dorsal edge is white, edged above with blackish suffusion. The discal stigmata are white, first forming an oblique mark, the second dot-like. Both are more or less edged by blackish and connected by an elongate blackish spot. There are blackish streaks between veins two and twelve, the uppermost terminating in a blackish spot on the middle of the costa. The next three are strong, interrupted by a sharply angulated whitish shade running from beyond the middle of the costa to four-fifth of the dorsum, others are slenderer, not continued beyond this shade or only by some scattered scales. There is a marginal series of irregular blackish dots round the posterior part of the costa and termen. The hindwings are whitish, slightly sprinkled pale grey posteriorly.[3]

The larvae feed on Alnus rugosa and Betula lutea.[4]

References

1. Beccaloni, G.; Scoble, M.; Kitching, I.; Simonsen, T.; Robinson, G.; Pitkin, B.; Hine, A.; Lyal, C., eds. (2003). "Nites grotella". The Global Lepidoptera Names Index. Natural History Museum. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
2. mothphotographersgroup
3. Exotic Microlep. 2 (7): 223
4. Nites at funet