Micro-Lepidoptera Garden Tortrix

Description:

A tiny moth only 4 mm long with almost clear underwings. It was so small that the pattern was not dicernable until magnified. It is amazing that something so small is as perfectly complete and complicated as moths many times its size. Family Tortricidae. This little moth is also called the Strawberry Tortrix Moth due to the larval preference for strawberry leaves. The San Cristobal valley has lots of strawberries in gardens everywhere, and strawberries are grown commercially in several valleys at somewhat lower elevations.

Habitat:

Came to an ultraviolet light in the garden, San Cristobal de Las Casas, 2,200 meters. This tiny moth is reported from Canada, the US and Costa Rica. It obviously occurs all over the non-desert parts of Mexico as well.