AMERICAN MOTHS OF THE SUBFAMILY PHYCITINAE 



13 



Dyar, on the evidence of a supposed t5rpe of nebulella 

 in the National Collection, resurrected the name and 

 applied it to the "pecan leaf casebearer." Barnes and 

 McDunnough (Contributions, vol. 2, p. 222, 1914; 

 vol. 3, p. 221, 1917) called attention to the spuriousness 

 of the alleged "type" and gave the pecan casebearer its 

 proper reference (juglandis LeBaron); but on the 

 strength of Dyar's identification the name nebulella 

 had already appeared, and continued to be used for some 

 years in economic publications for the pecan leaf case- 

 bearer. In his 1939 Check List McDunnough applies 

 the name in an entirely new sense, transferring it to 

 Meroptera with the well-known unicolorella Hulst as a 

 synonym. This was most unfortunate and altogether 

 unnecessary. We know what unicolorella Hulst is, and 

 its type is at hand for reference. The type of nebulella 

 is nonexistent and McDunnough's new reference has 

 nothing to back it but an entomologist's interpretation 

 of Riley's description and very poor and over-inked 

 figure of the forewing. I see nothing in either to rule 

 out the original interpretation, so shall let the name 

 sleep in synonymy. 



3. Acrobasis grossbecki (Barnes and McDunnough), new combi- 

 nation 



Mineola indigenella nebulella Grossbeck (not Riley), Bull. Amer. 

 Mus. Nat. Hist., vol. 37, p. 129, 1917.— Barnes and Mc- 

 Dunnough, Contributions, vol. 3, p. 220, 1917. 



Mineola grossbecki Barnes and McDunnough, Contributions, 

 vol. 3, p. 221, 1917.— McDunnough, Check list. No. 6116, 

 1939. 



Forewing purplish brown, the dark ground color 

 more extended than in indigenella, obscuring the pale 

 antemedial line and completely obliterating the reddish 

 ocherous subbasal patch on inner margin usually present 

 in the genus; triangular black spot on costa, beginning 

 the outer dark border of antemedial line, distinct and 

 sharply contrasted as in indigenella; white areas 

 restricted more than in indigenella, the subbasal one 

 narrowly triangulate with its point on inner margin, 

 midcostal one extending to and including the discal 

 spots in its lower angle; whitish dusting in terminal 

 area very faint; sub terminal line obscure; discal spots 

 at end of cell black, separated. Hind wing shiny, 

 smoky fuscous. Alar expanse, 15-16 mm. 



Genitalia as in indigenella. 



Type locality: Lakeland, Fla. (type in USNM). 



Food plant: Crataegus (larva feeding on the leaves). 



Distribution: Known only from the type locality. 

 May be a Florida race of indigenella, but appears to 

 be a distinct species despite the likeness of its genitalia 

 to ithose of indigenella. 



4. Acrobasis vaccinii Riley 

 FiQ0BE 642 



Acrobasis vaccinii Riley, Canadian Ent., vol. 16, p. 237, 1884; in 

 Rep. [U. S.] Comm. Agr. for 1884, p. 355, 1885.— Smith, 

 in Rep. [U. S.] Comm. Agr. for 1884, p. 394, 1885. — Saunders, 

 Insects injurious to fruits, p. 375, 1883 (as "The Cranberry 

 Fruit-worm"). — Ragonot, Monograph, pt. 1, p. 121, 1893. — 

 Forbes, Cornell Mem. 68, p. 618, 1923. 



Mineola vaccinii (Riley) Hulst, Phycitidae of N. Amer., p. 128, 

 1890.— Brown, Oregon Agr. Exp. Station Bull. 225, p. 19, 

 1927.— Crowley, Washington Agr. Exp. Station Bull. 230, 

 p. 24, 1929.— McDunnough, Check list. No. 6114, 1939.— 

 Beckwith, Journ. Econ. Ent., vol. 34, p. 169, 1941. 



Averaging smaller than indigenella; dark ground 

 color similar but more extended and without the con- 

 trasting black costal triangle; pale antemedial line 

 obliterated by a transverse extension of the ground 

 color, bordered inwardly by an almost vertical, rather 

 narrow white band which expands narrowly on costa 

 towards base (the remains of the much-reduced sub- 

 basal white area); midcostal white patch also much 

 restricted, barely including at its lower angle the 

 separated black discal spots; on fresh specimens some 

 sprinkling of rufous scaling is distinguished under high 

 magnification, but no reddish or other contrastingly 

 colored, angulate, subbasal patch on inner margin (as 

 in indigenella and tricolorella) . Hind wing pale smoky 

 fuscous. Alar expanse 14-18 mm. 



Male genitalia differing in no significant detail from 

 those of indigenella. Female genitalia with bursa 

 more or less heart-shaped (less elongate than that of 

 indigenella or grossbecki); signum present as a minute 

 granulate cuplike patch. 



Type locality: Massachusetts (type in USNM). 



Food plant: Cranberry, blueberry (larva in the 

 fruit). 



Distribution: Massachusetts (type series, no exact 

 locahty, June), Wareham (June, July); Connecticut,Ea,st 

 River (July);iVew Jersey, Pemberton (May), Whitesbog 

 (June); Wisconsin; Michigan; Georgia; Mississippi, 

 Biloxi, Poplarville; Washington, Long Beach (June), 

 Sea view (July). 



Presumably generally distributed on the range of its 

 food plants in the United States and Canada. The 

 foregoing records are from reared and typical examples 

 in the National Collection. 



This species, popularly known as the "cranberry 

 fruitworm," is of some importance, especially to cran- 

 berry growers, and has a rather extensive economic 

 literature, mostly in annual reports, bulletins, and other 

 pubHcations of state entomologists and experiment 

 stations. None of these adds anything of biological or 

 taxonomic significance to the earlier records of Riley 

 and Smith. 



5. Acrobasis amplexella Ragonot 



Acrobasis amplexella Ragonot, N. Amer. Phycitidae, p. 3, 1887; 



Monograph, pt. 1, p. 97, 1893.— Forbes, Cornell, Mem. 68, 



p. 618, 1923. 

 Mineola amplexella (Ragonot) Hulst, Phycitidae of N. Amer., 



p. 127, 1890.— McDunnough, Check list. No. 6112, 1939. 



This is probably nothing but a color form of vaccinii. 

 I can find no difference from the latter except in the 

 greater extension of the basal dark area of forewing and 

 the consequent further restriction of the subbasal white 

 area which is a narrow band throughout, not expanding 

 along costa towards base. 



Rearing will have to settle the status of amplexella. 

 In the material before me there are only collected 



