About Archips packardiana (Fernald, 1886)
Archips packardiana, commonly known as the spring spruce needle moth or spruce needleworm, is a moth species belonging to the family Tortricidae. Small numbers of these spruce needleworms are commonly found on spruce and other coniferous tree genera across most of Canada and the northeastern United States, according to Rose and Lindquist (1985). This species overwinters as very small larvae inside a mined needle. Larvae resume mining needles in the spring, then later move to feed on new foliage, where they produce a large amount of webbing. Full-grown larvae reach around 20 mm in length; they have a pale green head that is sometimes patterned with brown, a pale body, and pale thoracic legs. The larva pupates, typically within webbed needles, and the adult moth emerges between summer and early fall. The closely related species Archips strianus is much less common, but according to Rose and Lindquist (1985), it likely occupies a similar habitat to A. packardiana. Archips strianus larvae have dark thoracic legs and small dark patches around the base of their thoracic hairs. The natural habitat of A. packardiana is coniferous and mixed woodlands. The adult wingspan of A. packardiana is approximately 17 mm. Recorded flight periods for adult A. packardiana are in April, and again from June to October. A. packardiana larvae feed on the needles of tree species from the Picea and Abies genera.
