Ottawa (Dunrobin), ON Canada

5 June 2003   7:38PM EST  (top left)
24 May 2005   8:34PM EST  (top center and right)
5 June 2003   7:49PM EST  (bottom left)
10 June 2003   7:54PM EST  (bottom center and right)
The photos at top center and right are of the same specimen, as are the photos at bottom center and right.

Ancylis nubeculana is one of 22 species of Ancylis recorded from the Ottawa area (J. D. Lafontaine, pers. comm., 2001).  My initial identification of Ancylis nubeculana was based on Internet resources.  My thanks to Dr. Jean-François Landry of Agriculture Canada for confirming the identity of several specimens, including the one pictured at center and right of the top row above, which was given to the Canadian National Collection in Ottawa.  This specimen was also included in the All Leps Barcode of Life project of the Biodiversity Institute of Ontario at the University of Guelph.  Some additional information was obtained from Internet resources and from Forbes, William T.M., The Lepidoptera of New York and Neighboring States, Primitive Forms, Microlepidoptera, Pyraloids, Bombyces (Ithaca, New York: Cornell University, 1923).

Ancylis nubeculana has a white forewing, with patches of light gray shading in the outer half. The beginning of a dark gray median fascia is usually evident at the midpoint of the costa.  The apex of the wing is rust-brown and finger-shaped, with a notch below it in the outer margin.  A short black dash is visible near the notch.  The inner part of the wing has a large brownish-black patch adjacent to the inner margin, with a somewhat angular lobe extending into the white part of the wing.  This patch is followed by a gray shade at the inner margin.  Note the brownish-black "ruff" around the face.  Forbes (1923) indicates a wingspan of 15 mm.

According to Rings and Metzler (Rings, R.W. and Metzler, E.H. 2002.  The Lepidoptera of Portage County, Ohio.  OARDC Research Bulletin 1195; available on the Internet), the larva of Ancylis nubeculana, also known as the Apple Leaf Folder, lives and feeds in the folded leaves of apple, pear and hawthorn.  According to Forbes (1923), the adult Ancylis nubeculana flies in May and June.

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