Author: (Walsingham, 1900)
Species Overview:
Adult: 20-24 mm wingspan; forewing ground colour pale yellow, strigulated with orange; markings consisting of two orange-brown transverse fasciae. Hindwing pale brownish yellow, apical area whitish ochreous.
Larva: average length 23 mm; head whitish green with dark pigment in region of stemmata; body whitish green; thoracic legs pale brown; spiracles deep brown [Ptycholoma imitator larva].
Pupa: 11-12 mm; pale green; spines of the cephalic row on the second and third abdominal segments reddish brown, attenuated, touching the dorsal surface of the segments except their apical parts; caudal row in these segments poorly developed [details pupa P. imitator ].
Taxonomic Description:
Male:
Ptycholoma imitator adult
External characters: 20-22 mm wingspan; labial palp and head pale yellowish ochreous, antenna brownish. Forewing elongate, dilated posteriorly; costa arced outwards basally, then straight; apex short; termen convex, not oblique. Costal fold narrow and very long, reaching to second transverse fascia. Ground colour pale yellow, strigulated with orange; markings orange-brown, consisting of a transverse fascia from 1/3 of costa to middle of dorsum and a second transverse fascia from 3/5 of costa to tornus. Some spots or strigulae present at termen. Cilia paler than ground colour. Hindwing pale brownish yellow, apical area whitish ochreous; cilia paler (Yasuda, 1975b).
male genitalia P. imitator
Genitalia: Uncus slender compared to Ptycholoma lecheana ; gnathos simple; socii minute. Transtilla entire, narrowing in median part. Valva triangular, strongly elongate in terminal part; sacculus with sharply pointed termination. Aedeagus long, with subapical projection and lateral minute dents.
Female:
External characters: 22-24 mm wingspan; forewing without costal fold, uniformly broad throughout. Ground colour of forewing darker than in male.
female genitalia P. imitator
Genitalia: Antrum cup-like, expanding caudally. Ductus bursae long; corpus bursae ovate with capitate, sharp, thorn-like, signum.
Biology:
Moths occur in July and August.
Host plants:
Malus pumila, Malus baccata, Pyrus simonii, Prunus x yedoensis, Prunus salicina, Prunus persica, Fagus crenata, Fragaria ananassa, Ulmus davidiana.
Damage:
The larvae are a pest of apple, pear and cherry.
Distribution:
Japan; Eastern Russia (Amur); Korea.
Pheromone:
Pheromone unknown.