Cherry fruitworm

Insect

Cherry fruitworm

Grapholita packardi Zeller

Lepidoptera: Tortricidae

Distribution: Most fruit-growing states and provinces in eastern North America.

Photos

Adult is a small, brownish-gray moth with a median gray band on the forewings and a dark spot at the base of the hind wings. NY State Ag Experiment Station
A

The adult is a small, brownish gray moth with a median gray band on the forewings and a dark spot at the base of the hind wings (A). Although whitish gray with a black head when young, the larva eventually becomes pink tinted, with a brownish tan head (B). Larvae possess an anal comb.

Crops Affected: apples, cherries, peaches

Damage

Attacks cherry, apple and peach. Larvae bore into the fruit shortly after hatching and form small, brown tunnels as they feed. More extensive feeding produces sunken, rough, brownish areas on the surface. The inside of the cherry, next to the pit, is completely eaten away; a larva may damage more than one fruit.

Management

An insecticide applied one to two times after petal fall can provide effective control.

Similar Species

Resembles the oriental fruit moth (Grapholita molesta) and lesser appleworm (G. prunivora), which are in the same genus, but the former lacks the median gray band on the forewings, and the latter has orange and bluish patches mixed in with the gray; neither has the dark hindwing spot. Separating the larvae of these species is more difficult, but compared with the other two, G. packardi has larger and more prominent dorsal plates, each containing several setae (hairs), on its last 2 abdominal segments.