Ottawa (Dunrobin), ON Canada

12 July 2003   (left and right) (specimen collected 11 July 2003)
Both photos are of the same specimen.

Ypsolopha canariella is one of three species of Ypsolopha known to occur in the Ottawa area.  I was able to place this specimen as an Ypsolopha on the basis of previous familiarity with another species, and based my identification of this species on Internet sources, pending confirmation by scientists at the Canadian National Collection in Ottawa.

The forewing of Ypsolopha canariella is a clear bright orange-yellow, marked with a somewhat triangular brown blotch in the approximate center of the wing.  The apex of this triangular blotch points toward the inner margin, and has a dark brown to black dot.  The upturned tips of the forewings seem to be a distinctive characteristic of Ypsolopha species.

According to Dr. Jeremy B. Tatum, whose "Butterflies and Moths of Southern Vancouver Island" appears on the Internet at http://facweb.furman.edu/~snyderjohn/tatum/index.htm , the larvae of Ypsolopha canariella feed on snowberry (Symphocarpos albus).

I have photographed this species only once, in 2003 on 11(12) July.