Forest Pests: Insects, Diseases & Other Damage Agents

Brown Hemlock Needleminer (Coleotechnites macleodi)

Maier, C.T., C.R. Lemmon, J.M. Fengler, D.F. Schweitzer, and R.C. Reardon. 2004. Caterpillars on the Foliage of Conifers in the Northeastern United States. FHTET-2004-1. Morgantown, WV: USDA Forest Service, Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team; 151 p.

Description. Brownish body with dark brown head and prothoracic shield, the latter with a light gray anterior margin. Up to 7 mm.

Food. Eastern hemlock.

Life Cycle. One generation. Partly grown caterpillar overwinters in hollowed needle in its feeding nest. Mature caterpillar present in May and June.

Comments. The young caterpillar initially mines a series of adjacent needles and ties them loosely together with silk. In the spring, the caterpillar hollows the undersides of additional needles, which also are bound together with silk (see below). The pupa is formed in a silken tube within the feeding web. This species can be distinguished from the green hemlock needleminer, Coleotechnites apicitripunctella, by its brown color. Freeman (1967) also has illustrated the feeding damage and webbed nest.

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