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


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Phytomyza leucanthemi Hering, 1935
[Diptera: Agromyzidae]


Phytomyza leucanthemi Hering, 1935a. Blattminen Mittel- NordEuropas Lief 1: xi.
Phytomyza chrysanthivora Lundquist, 1949. Opusc. ent. 14: 49. [Synonymised by Spencer, 1976: 440].
Phytomyza leucanthemi Hering, 1935a; Spencer, 1972b. Handbk ident. Br. Ins. 10(5g): 74 (fig. 245), 79, 112.
Phytomyza leucanthemi Hering, 1935a; Spencer, 1976. Fauna ent. Scand. 5(1): 440, fig. 767.
Phytomyza leucanthemi Hering, 1935a; Spencer, 1990. Host specialization in the World Agromyzidae (Diptera) : 301, 304 (fig. 1173), 306.


Leaf-mine: Mine irregularly linear, whitish, distinctly widening, most frequently on lower leaves. Pupation external (Spencer, 1972b: 79). The mine is illustrated in British leafminers and Nederlandse bladmineerders.

Mine of Phytomyza leucanthemi on Leucanthemum vulgare (using transmitted light). Images: Willem Ellis (Source: Nederlandse bladmineerders)
Mine of Phytomyza leucanthemi on Leucanthemum vulgare. (usimg reflected light) Images: Willem Ellis (Source: Nederlandse bladmineerders)
Mine of Phytomyza leucanthemi on Leucanthemum vulgare.
Images: Willem Ellis (Source: Nederlandse bladmineerders)

Larva: The larva is described by Hering (1954); posterior spiracles each with 18-20 bulbs.

Puparium: Black; posterior spiracles each with an irregular ellipse of some 20 bulbs (Spencer, 1976: 440).

Hosts in Britain:

Asteraceae      
? Leucanthemum maximum   Robbins, 1991: 116
Leucanthemum vulgare Oxeye Daisy British leafminers
Leucanthemum vulgare Oxeye Daisy Mines in BMNH
Leucanthemum vulgare Oxeye Daisy Robbins, 1991: 116
Leucanthemum vulgare Oxeye Daisy Spencer, 1972b: 112

Hosts elsewhere:

Asteraceae      
Leucanthemum     Spencer, 1990: 301
Leucanthemum vulgare Oxeye Daisy Spencer, 1976: 440
Leucanthemum vulgare Oxeye Daisy Nederlandse bladmineerders

Time of year - mines: August.

Time of year - adults: Unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain & Ireland: Widespread but local. Surrey (Box Hill), Herts (East Barnet), Perth (Killin) (Spencer, 1972b: 79), Berks (Dinton Pastures), Hants (Fleet) (British leafminers), Warwick (Foleshill) (Robbins, 1991: 116), South-west York and Surrey (NBN Gateway distribution map - NE).

NBN Distribution maps of known host species:

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread and not uncommon in many parts of Europe including Norway, Sweden (Spencer, 1976: 440), The Netherlands (Nederlandse bladmineerders), Germany (Spencer, 1976: 574), ? Albania, Czech Republic, Denmark, French mainland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovenia (Martinez in Fauna Europaea).

Parasitoids: Unknown.



External links: Search the internet:

British leafminers
Fauna Europaea [127684]
NBN Gateway
Nederlandse bladmineerders

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Last updated 14-Dec-2008  Brian Pitkin