Black-lyre Kiwifruit Leafroller Moth

The Black-lyre Leafroller Moth ("Cnephasia" jactatana) is atortrix moth species (family Tortricidae). It is endemic to New Zealand.

It belongs to the subfamily Tortricinae and therein to tribeCnephasiini. But among these, it is in fact not close enough to thetype species of Cnephasia – Cnephasia pasiuana of Europe – to properly belong in that genus. Alternatively, it has variously been referred to Batodes (= Ditula) or Paedisca (= Epinotia); if anything it might belong to the latter, presently circumscribed as a large and wide-ranging group of uncertain monophyly. But its actual genus has yet to be determined with certainty.

The species is primarily known as a pest of Kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosa), but the caterpillars feed on various other trees with fleshy fruit, such as Citrus, hawthorns (Crataegus), persimmons and ebonies (Diospyros), gum trees (Eucalyptus), fuchsias(Fuchsia) and grapevines (Vitis). They primarily feed on the leaves, but can also damage the husk and fruit body.

The eggs are laid on the topside of the leaf. They prefer older leaves.