Stigmella centifoliella (Zeller, 1848)
Diagnosis. The only northern European species in the group with a distinct fascia. Both male and female genitalia are very similar to S. anomalella; see that species.
Male. Wingspan: 5.0-6.0 mm. Head: frontal tuft ferruginous, sometimes mixed with fuscous, or black; collar and scape yellowish white; antenna slightly longer than half length of forewing. Forewing: area proximal to fascia dark bronze-brown, slightly darker and often suffused with purple along costa; fascia postmedial, broad, whitish; distal to fascia dark bronze-brown, suffused with purple; terminal cilia concolorous with distal part of forewing, slightly paler at tips. Hindwing: grey; androconial scales absent. Abdomen: fuscous, suffused with blue and purple. Female. Wingspan: 5.0-6.0 mm. Antenna half length of forewing. Otherwise similar to male. Male genitalia. Vinculum with distinct concavity and rounded lateral corners. Uncus with two short, rounded protuberances with heavily sclerotized margins. Gnathos with short horizontal element and long horns. Valva with pointed, arcuate distal process and rounded inner lobe, constricted at base. Transtilla with lateral arms and horizontal bar forming an U-shaped band without sublateral processes. Aedeagus distinctly shorter than genital capsule, vesica with two to three groups of blunt cornuti and numerous very small spines in two groups.
Female genitalia. Bursa copulatrix three-quarters length of abdomen. Corpus bursae covered with short close-set pectinations. Accessory sac very small, with indistinct reticulate field. Ductus spermathecae one-third length of bursa copulatrix. Apophyses anteriores and posteriores of equal length, straight and slender.
Host plants: Rosa spp., Sanguisorba officinalis, S. minor and S. hybrida. Egg: generally on underside of leaf. Larva: yellow, head brown. Mine: a long, sinuous, gradually widening gallery; frass black, throughout the mine in a central line leaving clear margins. It is often not possible to distinguish this mine from that of S. anomalella. Cocoon: red-brown; on base of leaf or at base of leaf-stalk.
Only from NEZ (Copenhagen) in Denmark and from Gtl. in Sweden. - In England and widely distributed in continental Europe; Mediterranean region, N. Africa and Canary Islands, S. Spain and Portugal.
Voltinism: bivoltine, in southern Europe continuously breeding; larvae in June-July and from the beginning of September to the end of October in Central Europe. In the northern part of its range centifoliella is often found on warmer sites than anomalella: chalk downs, sand dunes. Also frequently in gardens.
Description based on Johansson and Nielsen (1990)
