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Obliquebanded Leafroller

Choristoneura rosaceana[4]

The obliquebanded leafroller is a native moth whose green caterpillars, with brown to black heads, roll and tie leaves together with silk and feed on buds, blossoms, leaves and young fruit of apple and other fruit trees.[1][2][3]

Group
Insect
Order
Lepidoptera
Family
Tortricidae
US records
45 states
Sources
4 cited
Updated
2026-10-16
Obliquebanded leafroller moth with banded tan wings
Obliquebanded leafroller moth with banded tan wings. (c) Henrique Pacheco, some rights reserved (CC BY) — via iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0
On this page
  1. Identification
  2. Look-alikes
  3. Where it lives
  4. Biology
  5. Damage and signs
  6. Health risk
  7. Control
  8. Related profiles
  9. Common questions
  10. Sources

How to identify it

  • Moths are about 1/3 to 1/2 inch long with a wingspan of about 3/4 to 1 inch; the forewings are tan to light reddish brown, crossed by three oblique chocolate-brown bands.[1][2][3]
  • Caterpillars are green to greenish yellow with a brown to black head and grow to 3/4 to 1 inch; when exposed they wriggle and drop on a silk thread.[2][3]
  • Eggs are laid in greenish-yellow overlapping masses on the upper sides of leaves.[1][2]

Look-alikes

Look-alikeHow to tell them apart
Redbanded leafrollerA smaller leafroller with similar overlapping egg masses.[2]
Fruittree leafroller and other leafrollersSeveral leafrollers attack fruit trees; Utah State notes the obliquebanded leafroller is the most common in Utah.[3]

Where it lives

Native and widely distributed across temperate North America, including Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Utah.[1][2][3]

US map: public records from 45 states since 1990 (GBIF).

Biology and life cycle

It overwinters as small larvae on the tree, in bark crevices or under bud scales, and resumes feeding at bud break.[1][3]

There are two generations a year; moths emerge in late May or early June and females can lay up to 900 eggs, which hatch in 10 to 12 days.[1]

Second-generation larvae feed mainly on leaves in late summer and fall before going dormant.[1]

Damage and signs

  • It prefers plants in the rose family, including apple, pear, peach, cherry, apricot and plum, and many other deciduous trees.[1][2][3]
  • Damage includes rolled leaves, holes in leaves, and early-season scars or tunnels in fruit; it is usually a minor pest but has occasional outbreaks.[1][2][3]

Health risk

None to people or pets.[1][2]

Control

Prevention

Pheromone traps show when moths are flying; most backyard trees don't need treatment.[1][3]

Traps and physical control

Check shoot tips for rolled leaves from mid-May, and squash larvae or cut out infested shoots.[3]

Pesticides

If needed, time sprays to bloom through petal fall for overwintered larvae, or to June and July when summer eggs have hatched.[1][3]

Common questions

What is rolling and webbing the leaves on my apple tree?
Often a leafroller such as the obliquebanded leafroller.[1][3]
Do I need to spray?
Usually not on backyard trees; hand-picking or pruning infested shoots often suffices.[3]
When are the caterpillars active?
From bud break through June, with a second generation in late summer.[1][3]

Sources

  1. Penn State Extension, “Tree Fruit Insect Pest - Obliquebanded Leafroller (updated February 25, 2026).” extension.psu.edu/tree-fruit-insect-pest-obliquebanded-leafroller/ (accessed 2026-10-16)
  2. NC State Extension, “Obliquebanded Leafroller (PDIC Factsheet).” content.ces.ncsu.edu/obliquebanded-leafroller (accessed 2026-10-16)
  3. Utah State University Extension (Integrated Pest Management), “Fruit Leafrollers (fruit pest fact sheet).” extension.usu.edu/planthealth/ipm/notes_ag/fruit-fruit-leafrollers.php (accessed 2026-10-16)
  4. iNaturalist, “Choristoneura rosaceana taxon page (order and family).” www.inaturalist.org/taxa/143728 (accessed 2026-10-06)

Updated 2026-10-16. Built from sourced records. Spot an error? Tell us.