Peach Twig Borer vs Essex Skipper

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Peach Twig Borer Essex Skipper
Scientific Name Anarsia lineatella Thymelicus lineola
Order Lepidoptera Lepidoptera
Family Gelechiidae Hesperiidae
Size 12-16 mm wingspan 26-30 mm wingspan
Habitat Orchards Grasslands
Diet Fruit Feeders Omnivores
Regions North America, Europe, Central Asia Europe, western Asia (introduced to North America)
Conservation Not Evaluated Least Concern

Peach Twig Borer

A small gray moth whose larvae bore into new shoots and developing fruits of stone fruit trees. It is a key pest in peach and almond orchards.

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Did You Know?

Overwintering larvae create small shelters called hibernacula in the crotches of tree branches.

Essex Skipper

A small orange-brown skipper so similar to the small skipper that it was not recognised as a separate British species until 1889. The undersides of its antenna tips are black, not orange.

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Did You Know?

It was overlooked in Britain for over a century because it was confused with the nearly identical small skipper.