Ottawa (Dunrobin), ON Canada

4 October 2005   7:50PM EST  (top left and top right)
4 October 2005   9:53PM EST  (bottom)
The two photos at top are of the same specimen.

When I first photographed Atteva punctella in July 2002, one of the first records of this species for the Ottawa area, I speculated that it was a stray occurrence.  No more specimens were observed at my location until 2005, when one specimen appeared at my light in late June, and two more specimens surprised me in early October.  This species was also recorded near Ottawa from the Quebec side of the Ottawa River in 2005 (J.-F. Landry, pers. comm., 2005).  It is unknown whether these observations are strays, or whether this species has extended its range northward to the Ottawa area.  For additional information on Atteva puncella, I have relied on Covell (1984) and Forbes, William T.M., The Lepidoptera of New York and Neighboring States, Primitive Forms, Microlepidoptera, Pyraloids, Bombyces (Ithaca, New York: Cornell University, 1923).

The forewing of Atteva punctella is crossed by alternate bright orange and pale whitish yellow bands.  The pale bands are outlined in black, and the whitish area is cut into rounded spots by fine black lines.  The first pale band is very close to the base, with the fourth and last pale band leaving the apex orange.  The hindwing is dark smoky gray.  Covell (1984) indicates a wingspan from 1.8 to 3.0 cm for this species.

According to Covell (1984), the larva of Atteva punctella, known as the Ailanthus Webworm, lives in communal webs on ailanthus, a tree that does not grow in the Ottawa area.

My records to date for Atteva punctella (each date representing "the night of") are in the table below: