Cameraria Chapman 1902

Cameraria Chapman, 1902 De Prins & Kawahara (2012) report that there are eight Afrotropical species belonging to this genus, which are grouped into five species groups. In South Africa, only two species have been reported: C. hexalobina (Vári, 1961), which feeds on Annonaceae, and C. varii De Prins 2012. These two species are respectively placed in the hexalobina and landryi groups. Cameraria bears a close resemblance to Phyllonorycter in terms of morphology, but it can be distinguished by the white markings on the forewing, which are usually bordered in black at the apex (with rare exceptions, see De Prins & Kawahara 2012 and Sawada et al. 2024), and the presence of a single pair of setae on the apex of tegumen, which is absent in Phyllonorycter. Other diagnostic characters are present in the morphology and behavior of the larva. The larvae of Cameraria remain flattened until their final instar, while in Phyllonorycter are flat only during the first three sap-feeding instars; the abdomen of last instar has a series of sclerotized shields on dorsal and ventral surfaces and a bisetose lateral group on the body segments; the larvae of Cameraria create relatively flat upperside mines, whereas those of Phyllonorycter create tentiform mines. However, this last character seems common especially in Holarctic species, while almost all known tropical Asian and Afrotropical species makes tentiform blotch mines, similar to those of Phyllonorycter (Sawada et al. 2024). For a detailed differentiation from Phyllonorycter and other genera in Lithocolletiinae, please refer to De Prins & Kawahara (2012), Eiseman & Davis (2020).