Revealing a Novel Potential Pest of Plum Trees in the Caucasus: A Species Resembling the European Leaf-Mining Stigmella plagicolella, Nepticulidae.

ABSTRACT: In instances of severe infestations, Nepticulidae larvae can inflict damage on cultivated plants. Previously, it was assumed that the Prunus-feeding Nepticulidae have continuous distribution from Europe to the neighboring Caucasus. During recent fieldwork in the Caucasus, leaf mines were found on plum trees that initially resembled those of Stigmella plagicolella (Stainton) in Europe. However, upon rearing the adults, significant differences emerged, leading to the hypothesis that a different Prunus-feeding species exists in the Caucasus; this challenges previous records in Western Asia. This paper presents the outcomes of our morphological, molecular, and statistical investigations, unveiling S. colchica sp. nov., a previously unknown potential plum-tree pest.

SUBMITTER: Stonis JR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10971272 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature