Adela trigrapha

Zeller, 1876

Three-striped Longhorn

Adela trigrapha is a fairy longhorn moth in the Adelidae, described by Zeller in 1876. It occurs in western North America from Vancouver Island to California. males display striking with extremely long and black forewings marked by three white lines, while females have shorter antennae, orange , and metallic blue-purple wings. The belongs to a family characterized by elongated antennae, particularly in males.

Adela trigrapha by (c) Ken-ichi Ueda, some rights reserved (CC BY). Used under a CC-BY license.

Adela trigrapha by (c) Ken-ichi Ueda, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Ken-ichi Ueda. Used under a CC-BY license.

Adela trigrapha by (c) Don Loarie, some rights reserved (CC BY). Used under a CC-BY license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Adela trigrapha: /əˈdɛlə trɪˈɡræfə/

These audio files are automatically generated. While they are not always 100% accurate, they are a good starting point.

Identification

Males distinguished by extremely long (three times forewing length) and black forewings with three white lines. Females recognized by orange , metallic blue forewings, and purple hindwings with shorter antennae. The three white lines on male forewings provide the specific epithet reference. Similar to other Adela but geographic range and distinct color patterns aid separation.

Images

Appearance

Small with forewing length 5.5–6.2 mm. males have large and long white approximately three times the forewing length; forewings black with three white transverse lines. Females smaller with smaller eyes and antennae; bright orange; forewings bright metallic blue, hindwings purple. pronounced in both coloration and antennae length.

Distribution

Western North America, from Vancouver Island (British Columbia, Canada) south to California (USA).

Host Associations

Leptosiphon androsaceus - possible larval tentative association
Leptosiphon bicolor - possible larval tentative association

Similar Taxa

Adela caeruleellaSimilar metallic blue coloration in females, but occurs in eastern North America rather than western; male and wing patterns differ
Adela ridingsellaAnother North American Adelidae with potentially overlapping range; distinguished by wing pattern and proportions