Pea Moths

moths of the Tortricidae family; pests of peas and other legumes, the most harmful of which is Laspeyresia nigricana.

The wingspan of the pea moth is 13–17 mm; the forewings are dark red-brown with touches of white along the edges; the hind wings are reddish brown in the females and whitish with a reddish brown border in the males. The pea moth is found in Europe; in the USSR it does great damage in the forest and forest-steppe zones of the European part of the country during a hot summer. The caterpillars winter and pupate in the soil. The moths emerge toward the blossoming season of the peas and deposit the eggs, mainly on the leaves. The caterpillars embed themselves in the pod and gnaw around the peas. In some places the species L. dorsana harms other bean crops. Protective measures include deep autumn plowing with plow and foreplow, early sowing of quick-maturing pea varieties, mixed sowings of pea and grass crops, and introducing egg parasites (Trichogrammatidae family).