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Greya obscura Davis and Pellmyr

Olle Pellmyr
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Containing group: Greya

Adult Characteristics

Wing expanse 10.5-19 mm. Forewings gray to light brown in the male, dark stramineous or with slight bronzy iridescence in the female, suffused with white ot whitish yellow, forming more or less distinct wing patterning. A rhomboid pale subtornal patch creates an arrowhead when the moth is at rest. Hindwing usually of the same shade as forewing or darker, without pattern.

Comparison with Similar Species

Lightly marked specimens can be mistaken for the sometimes coexisting G. politella. The light subtornal patch is usually present to some degree, even in the weakest of patterned specimens. Definitive identification can be established by checking for a minute pollex in obscura males as opposed to a prominent one in politella, and the absence in obscura of the much elongated seventh abdominal segment in female politella.

Host, Oviposition, and Larval Feeding Habits

The species feeds exclusively on several species of Lithophragma (Saxifragaceae). Eggs are laid in the floral calyx and in stem portion. Larvae do not feed on seeds, and are believed to mine in adjacent vegetative parts.

Geographic Distribution

Ranging from the drier southwesternmost part of Oregon to the San Garbriel Mountains aand southern Sierra Nevada of California.

Habitat

Occurring in grassy portions of open oak woodland, with or without a shrub component. Elevational range 300-1000 m. The species coexists with politella, solenobiella, powelli and suffusca.

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Characteristic habitat; Monterey Co., California, USA.

Type

Holotype in USNM.

References

Davis, D.R., O. Pellmyr & J.N. Thompson. 1992. Biology and systematics of Greya Busck and Tetragma n. gen. (Lepidoptera: Prodoxidae). Smiths. Contrib. Zool. 524:1-88.

Pellmyr, O., J.N. Thompson, J. Brown & R.G. Harrison. 1996. Evolution of pollination and mutualism in the yucca moth lineage. Amer. Nat. 148:827-847.

Title Illustrations
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Scientific Name Greya obscura
Location Santa Barbara Co., California, USA
Specimen Condition Dead Specimen
Sex Male
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
Copyright © 1996
Scientific Name Greya obscura
Location Douglas Co., Oregon, USA
Specimen Condition Dead Specimen
Sex Female
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
Copyright © 1996
Scientific Name Greya obscura
Location Josephine Co., Oregon, USA
Specimen Condition Dead Specimen
Sex Female
Image Use creative commons This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0.
Copyright © 1996
About This Page


University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, USA

Page: Tree of Life Greya obscura Davis and Pellmyr. Authored by Olle Pellmyr. The TEXT of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License - Version 3.0. Note that images and other media featured on this page are each governed by their own license, and they may or may not be available for reuse. Click on an image or a media link to access the media data window, which provides the relevant licensing information. For the general terms and conditions of ToL material reuse and redistribution, please see the Tree of Life Copyright Policies.

Citing this page:

Pellmyr, Olle. 1996. Greya obscura Davis and Pellmyr. Version 01 January 1996 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Greya_obscura/12320/1996.01.01 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/

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