Leaf-mine: Generally small, upper-surface, pear-shaped mines, half of their surface stuffed with frass. In the frass-free part an oval, flattened larva. Often several mines in a leaf. Prior to oviposition the larvae eat, a large number of tiny holes in the leaves (Bladmineerders van Europa).

The larva over winters in the upper surface mine. There can be several mines in a leaf (British leafminers).

Larva: The larva is illustrated in Bladmineerders van Europa.

Rhamphus pulicarius larva, dorsal Image: Willem Ellis (Bladmineerders van Europa)

Pupa: Details unknown.

Hosts in Britain:

Hosts elsewhere:

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

Time of year - adults: Unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain & Ireland: Widespread in Britain including Anglesey, Bedfordshire, Brecon, Caernarvonshire, Cambridgeshire, Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire, Cumberland, Denbighshire, Dorset, Dumfrieshire, East Gloucestershire, East Kent, East Norfolk, East Suffolk, East Sussex, Easterness, Glamorgan, Herefordshire, Hertfordshire, Huntingdonshire, Leicestershire, Merionethshire
Monmouthshire, Montgomeryshire, North Ebudes, North Lincolnshire, Northumberland South, Nottinghamshire, Pembrokeshire, Radnorshire, Shropshire, South Hampshire, South Lancaster, South Lincolnshire, South Somerset, Stafford, Surrey, Warwickshire, West Cornwall, West Gloucestershire, West Kent, West Lancaster, West Norfolk, West Ross, West Suffolk, West Sussex, Westmorland and Worcestershire (NBN Gateway, includes Watsonian Vice Counties having records that fall within or overlap the vice county border at 10km resolution or better) and Northern Ireland (Alonso-Zarazaga in Fauna Europaea).

Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland (Alonso-Zarazaga in Fauna Europaea).

NBN Grid map: Note that not all datasets on the NBN Gateway may be available on the map below. If you are an NBN Gateway registered user you can request access for missing datasets via the link 'Open interactive map in new window' below.

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Bulgaria, Corsica, French mainland, Germany, Greek mainland, Hungary, Italian mainland, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia - East, Sardinia, Sicily, Slovakia and Yugoslavia.

Also recorded in the East Palaearctic and North Africa (Alonso-Zarazaga in Fauna Europaea).

NBN interactive distribution map(s) of known host species in Great Britain and Ireland and elsewhere:

Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere: Unknown.

Biodiversity Heritage Library
Bladmineerders van Europa
British leafminers
Encyclopedia of Life, as Curculio pulicarius
Fauna Europaea
NBN Gateway