''Rectiostoma fernaldella'' (stenomid oak leaf tier) is a species of moth in the family

Depressariidae Depressariidae is a family of moths. It was formerly treated as a subfamily of Gelechiidae, but is now recognised as a separate family, comprising about 2,300 species worldwide. Subfamilies Depressariidae consists of ten subfamilies: * Acriinae ...

. It was described by Riley in 1889. It is found from southern

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, where it is found in the eastern basin and range area in southern

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

and disjunctly to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. There is also a record for

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

is about 13 mm. Adults have been observed flying in shady areas under oaks during midday. There is a single annual generation in California, with adults on wing in May, June and July. The larvae feed on ''

Quercus agrifolia ''Quercus agrifolia'', the California live oak, or coast live oak, is an evergreen live oak native to the California Floristic Province. Live oaks are so-called because they keep living leaves on the tree all year, adding young leaves and sheddi ...

'', ''

Quercus wislizenii ''Quercus wislizeni'', known by the common name interior live oak, is an evergreen oak, highly variable and often shrubby, found in western North America. Description It is a large shrub or tree growing to tall, although where it is common in ...

'', '' Quercus dumosa'', '' Quercus dumosax engelmanni'', ''

Quercus lobata ''Quercus lobata'', commonly called the valley oak or roble, is the largest of the California oaks. It is endemic to the state, growing in interior valleys and foothills from Siskiyou to San Diego counties. Deciduous, it requires year-round grou ...

'', ''

Quercus suber ''Quercus suber'', commonly called the cork oak, is a medium-sized, evergreen oak tree in the section ''Quercus'' sect. ''Cerris''. It is the primary source of cork for wine bottle stoppers and other uses, such as cork flooring and as the core ...

'', ''

Quercus chrysolepis ''Quercus chrysolepis'', commonly termed canyon live oak, canyon oak, golden cup oak or maul oak, is a North American species of evergreen oak. Its leaves are a glossy dark green on the upper surface with prominent spines; a further identificati ...

'', '' Quercus dunii'', ''

Lithocarpus densiflorus ''Notholithocarpus densiflorus'', commonly known as the tanoak or tanbark-oak, is a broadleaf tree in the family Fagaceae, and the type species of the genus ''Notholithocarpus''. It is a hardwood tree that is native to the far western United Sta ...

'', ''

Chrysolepis chrysophylla ''Chrysolepis chrysophylla'' is a species of flowering shrub or tree in the Fagaceae, beech family known by the common names golden chinquapin, giant chinquapin, and western chinquapin. It is native to the Pacific coast of the United States.McMur ...

'' and '' Chrysolepis semipervirens''. The larvae utilize shelters made by the preceding generation for overwintering. These shelters consist of two leaves sandwiched together with a thick rim of frass and silk sealing their edges. Within these shelters the larva skeletonize both leaf surfaces.Neotropical Microlepidoptera XX: Revision of the Genus Setiostoma (Lepidoptera: Stenomidae)

References

Moths described in 1889 Rectiostoma {{Depressariidae-stub