Northern Boxelder Twig Borer Moth

Proteoteras crescentana

Proteoteras crescentana is a moth in the Family Tortricidae (Tortricid Moths), Subfamily Olethreutinae.
Black-crescent Proteoteras - Proteoteras crescentana TL: 8 mm. Brownish gray FW with a thick, black crescent that arcs toward apex. Host: Box elder Habitat: Attracted to a 395 nm LED light in a semi-rural area 2021(24) Geotagged,Northern Boxelder Twig Borer Moth,Proteoteras,Proteoteras crescentana,Spring,United States,moth

Appearance

Adult: forewing light to medium brown with conspicuous blackish crescent-shaped marking that begins midway along costa and terminates at apex; marking is very heavy from costa inward to middle of wing, then bends smoothly toward outer margin and becomes thinner as it runs in a fairly straight line to the apex; dark gray shading in upper basal area separated from crescent-shaped marking by pale oblique area along costa; area along inner margin often paler and with diffuse yellowish shading; short oblique streaks along distal half of costa [typical of many species of Tortricidae] are reduced or absent in P. crescentana; hindwing grayish-brown with darker veins.
Proteoteras crescentana Geotagged,Northern Boxelder Twig Borer Moth,Proteoteras crescentana,Summer,United States

Naming

Proteoteras crescentana Kearfott, 1907

Specific epithet crescentana for the "very strong, well defined black crescent" on the forewings.
Black-crescent Proteoteras - Proteoteras crescentana TL: 8 mm. Brownish gray FW with a thick, black crescent that arcs toward apex. Host: Box elder Habitat: Attracted to a 395 nm LED light in a semi-rural area 2020(206) Geotagged,Northern Boxelder Twig Borer Moth,Proteoteras,Proteoteras crescentana,Spring,United States,moth

Distribution

Ontario and northeastern states south to at least Maryland, west to Texas and Colorado, north to Alberta.
Black-crescent Proteoteras - Proteoteras crescentana TL: 8 mm. Brownish gray FW with a thick, black crescent that arcs toward apex. Host: Box elder Habitat: Attracted to an LED light (395 nm) in a semi-rural area Black-crescent Proteoteras,Geotagged,Northern Boxelder Twig Borer Moth,Proteoteras,Proteoteras crescentana,Spring,United States,moth

Behavior

Adults are nocturnal and attracted to light.
Black-crescent Proteoteras - Proteoteras crescentana TL: 8 mm. Brownish gray FW with a thick, black crescent that arcs toward apex. Host: Box elder Habitat: Attracted to a 395 nm LED light in a semi-rural area 2021(d) Geotagged,Northern Boxelder Twig Borer Moth,Proteoteras crescentana,Spring,United States,moth

Habitat

Woodlands, parks, suburban areas containing Acer negundo (box elder).

Food

Heinrich reported the larvae feed on Acer negundo (box elder).

References:

Some text fragments are auto parsed from Wikipedia.

https://bugguide.net/node/view/60427
http://mothphotographersgroup.msstate.edu/species.php?hodges=3233
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionArthropoda
ClassInsecta
OrderLepidoptera
FamilyTortricidae
GenusProteoteras
SpeciesProteoteras crescentana
Photographed in
United States of America