38.005 Elachista triatomea (Triple-spotted Grass-miner)
ws: 8-9mm; Jun-Jul; sheep's, red or fine-leaved sheep's fescue (Festuca ovina/rubra/filiformis); open grassland and meadows especially hills and coastal cliffs in C&E.England, N.Wales, SE.Scotland.
Elachista triatomea §2 male
ID: Forewing pale with darker markings >6 species. Of these only E.triatomea shows two distinct linear dark blackish spots.
Male genitalia: vinculum without a distinct process; aedeagus with a single small-medium cornutus
Female genitalia: said (MBGBI3) to be distinctive in having extensive small spines on the corpus bursae (this feature is too microscopic to show photographically).
E.cahorsensis only occurs in S.Wales and Cornwall and it shows a signum in the bursa copulatrix.
E.triseriatella occurs in SW.England and Wales and it lacks a sclerotised segment in the ductus bursae and has relatively straight apophyses anterioires
E.maculicerasella usually has more extensive dark markings and has a much longer sclerotised section of the ductus bursae and a signum in bursa copulatrix
E.collitella is very rare in Britain. It lacks a sclerotised segment of DB.
E.subocellea has more extensive dark markings. It does have a short sclerotised segment of DB but the apophyses anteriores are much straighter.
Male genitalia: vinculum without a distinct process; aedeagus with a single small-medium cornutus
Female genitalia: said (MBGBI3) to be distinctive in having extensive small spines on the corpus bursae (this feature is too microscopic to show photographically).
E.cahorsensis only occurs in S.Wales and Cornwall and it shows a signum in the bursa copulatrix.
E.triseriatella occurs in SW.England and Wales and it lacks a sclerotised segment in the ductus bursae and has relatively straight apophyses anterioires
E.maculicerasella usually has more extensive dark markings and has a much longer sclerotised section of the ductus bursae and a signum in bursa copulatrix
E.collitella is very rare in Britain. It lacks a sclerotised segment of DB.
E.subocellea has more extensive dark markings. It does have a short sclerotised segment of DB but the apophyses anteriores are much straighter.
Dissection
Male genitalia
Female genitalia
§1 Foulness, Essex; 27/06/2010; female; fw 3.8mm
§2 Foulness, Essex; 28/05/2016; male
All images © Chris Lewis
§2 Foulness, Essex; 28/05/2016; male
All images © Chris Lewis
Page published March 2011 (§1) | §2 added 13/05/2017
