The leaf and stem  mines of British flies and other insects by Brian Pitkin, Willem Ellis, Colin Plant and Rob Edmunds.


HOME : Introduction : Methods : Miners : Parasitoids
Host plants by Scientific name : Host plants by Common name
References : Web resources : Acknowledgements : Recent changes : Index : Search


Orchestes jota (Fabricius, 1787)
[Coleoptera: Curculionidae]
.


Curculio jota Fabricius, 1787.
Curculio iota
Fabricius, 1787.
Curculio rosae
Herbst, 1795.
Rhynchaenus iota
(Fabricius, 1787).
Orchestes jota (Fabricius, 1787).


Leaf-mine: Oviposition in the midrib. From there a corridor the larva enters the lamina which suddenly and strongly widens. The larva finally pupates in a globular cocoon inside the mine. Because the mine is formed when the leaf already is fully developed mined leaves have a normal shape (Bladmineerders van Europa).

The mine is also described and illustrated in British leafminers.

Mine of Orchestes jota on Betula pubescens Image: Willem Ellis (Nederlandse bladmineerders)
Mine of Orchestes jota on Betula pubescens
Image: Willem Ellis (Bladmineerders van Europa)

Larva: The larva is yellow (British leafminers).

Pupa: Details unknown.

Comments: According to Hering (1957a) this blotch part is situated against the leaf margin, and in the distal part of the leaf; this would separate this mine from that of Tachyerges stigma. However, Scherf (1964a) writes that at least in Alnus, the two mines cannot be told apart (Bladmineerders van Europa).

Hosts in Britain:

Betulaceae      
Alnus     British leafminers
Betula     British leafminers
Myricaceae      
Myrica gale Bog-myrtle British leafminers
Myrica gale Bog-myrtle Pitkin & Plant (as Orchestes iota)

Hosts elsewhere:

Betulaceae      
Alnus glutinosa Alder Bladmineerders van Europa
Betula nana Dwarf Birch Bladmineerders van Europa
Betula pendula Silver Birch Bladmineerders van Europa
Betula pubescens Downy Birch Bladmineerders van Europa
Myricaceae      
Myrica gale Bog-myrtle Bladmineerders van Europa

Time of year - larvae: June to August (British leafminers).

Time of year - adults: Unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain & Ireland: A southern species in the UK (British leafminers) including Dorset, North Essex, North Somerset, South Hants and Surrey (NBN Gateway distribution map, as Rhynchaenus iota - NE).

Distribution elsewhere: Europe including French mainland, Germany, Italian mainland, Poland, Slovakia. Also recorded in the East Palaearctic (Alonso-Zarazaga in Fauna Europaea).

NBN Distribution maps of known host species in Britain and elsewhere:

Alnus glutinosa, Betula nana, Betula pendula, Betula pubescens, Myrica gale

Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere: Unknown.



External links: Search the internet:

British leafminers
NBN Gateway
, as Rhynchaenus iota
Bladmineerders van Europa
Fauna Europaea [251022]
.

Find using Google
Find using Google Scholar
Find images using Google

Top of page

Last updated 20-Mar-2011  Brian Pitkin