Caloptilia octopunctata

Description

Caloptilia octopunctata is a moth of the family Gracillariidae. It is known from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, India, Australia (New South Wales and Queensland), New Zealand and Indonesia. The wingspan is 9–13 mm. The larvae feed on Homalanthus species, Omalanthus populifolius, Sapium ellipticum, Sapium indicum and Sapium sebiferum. They mine the leaves of their host plant. Mines are always started at the upper epidermal layer. The mine at first is narrowly linear, upper epidermal, and transparent-whitish in colour, then it widens to an irregularly blotch-formed mine, which is upper parenchymal and greenish-brown in colour. The third instar larva, transforms to the tissue-feeding type, continues feeding within the mine cavity. The mine in this stage is completely changed in colour to pale brown, and slightly contorted on the upper epidermis with silken threads. After the moult, the fourth instar larva emerges from the mine through a round hole, and migrates to the margin of the same leaf or another one. It cuts a strip of the leaf along the margin and rolls up the strip into a cone on the lower side of the leaf. Then the larva continues to feed inside the cone. The larva seems to make one or more leaf-rolls during the remaining four instars. Pupation occurs within the final leaf-roll in a white and spindle-shaped cocoon.