The leaf and stem mines of British flies and other insects
 

(Coleoptera, Diptera, Hymenoptera and Lepidoptera)

by Brian Pitkin, Willem Ellis, Colin Plant and Rob Edmunds

 

Phytomyza myosotica Nowakowski, 1959
[Diptera: Agromyzidae]


Phytomyza myosotica Nowakowski, 1959. Dt. ent. Z. (N.F.) 6: 213
Phytomyza myosotica Nowakowski, 1959; Spencer, 1972b. Handbk ident. Br. Ins. 10(5g): 86 (fig. 293), 90, 109
Phytomyza myosotica Nowakowski, 1959; Spencer, 1990. Host specialization in the World Agromyzidae (Diptera) : 198, 199.


Leaf-miner: Mine initially linear, later developing into a whitish blotch. Pupation in mine on lower surface (Spencer, 1972b: 90).

Rather small upper-surface secondary blotch in the leaf apex, generally beginning with a short corridor that mostly is overrun by the later blotch. No feeding lines recognisable. The final part of the mine is a lower-surface corridor, mostly following a vein and containing no frass. At its end an exit slit is made; mostly the larva pupariates within the mine, just before the exit (Bladmineerders van Europa).

Larva: The larvae of flies are leg-less maggots without a head capsule (see examples). They never have thoracic or abdominal legs. They do not have chewing mouthparts, although they do have a characteristic cephalo-pharyngeal skeleton (see examples), usually visible internally through the body wall.

Anterior spiracles of the larva each with 15-18 bulbs, posterior spiracles each with 15-19 bulbs (Nowakowsksi, 1959; Griffiths, 1975).

Puparium: The puparia of flies are formed within the hardened last larval skin or puparium and as a result sheaths enclosing head appendages, wings and legs are not visible externally (see examples).

Yellowish orange (Spencer, 1972b: 90).

Hosts in Great Britain and Ireland:

Boraginaceae        
Myosotis palustris Common Water Forget-Me-Not   Mines in BMNH
Myosotis palustris Common Water Forget-Me-Not   Spencer, 1972b: 109
Myosotis scorpioides Water Forget-me-not British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Pitkin & Plant
Myosotis sylvatica Wood Forget-me-not British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Spencer, 1972b: 109

Hosts elsewhere:

Boraginaceae        
Myosotis       Spencer, 1990: 199
Myosotis       Mines in BMNH
Myosotis alpestris Alpine Forget-me-not British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Myosotis aquatica     Mines in BMNH
Myosotis arvensis Field Forget-me-not British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Myosotis decumbens     Bladmineerders van Europa
Myosotis hybrida     Bladmineerders van Europa
Myosotis palustris Common Water Forget-Me-Not   Bladmineerders van Europa
Myosotis sylvatica Wood Forget-me-not British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Omphalodes       Spencer, 1990: 198

Time of year - mines: August (Bladmineerders van Europa); Robbins (1991) mentions a summer and an autumn generation.

Time of year - adults: Currently unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: Widespread but local. Surrey (Bookham), Oxford (Oxford) and Huntingdonshire (Woodwalton Fen) (Spencer, 1972b: 90); Glamorgan (NBN Atlas).

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Norway (Mines in BMNH), Germany, Poland (Spencer, 1990: 198), Czech Republic and Lithuania (Fauna Europaea).

NBN Atlas links to known host species:

Myosotis alpestris, Myosotis arvensis, Myosotis palustris, Myosotis scorpioides, Myosotis sylvatica

British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere:

Chalcidoidea   
Chrysocharis idyia (Walker, 1839) Eulophidae: Entedoninae
Chrysocharis viridis (Nees, 1934) Eulophidae: Entedoninae
Chrysocharis pubicornis (Zetterstedt, 1838) Eulophidae: Entedoninae
Ichneumonoidea - Links to species no longer available  
Chorebus nanus (Nixon, 1943) Braconidae: Alysiinae
Dacnusa maculipes Thomson, 1895 Braconidae: Alysiinae
Grammospila rufiventris (Nees, 1812) Braconidae: Alysiinae
Apodesmia similis (Szépligeti, 1898) Braconidae: Opiinae
Cremnodes atricapillus (Gravenhorst, 1815) Ichneumonidae: Cryptinae


External links: Search the internet:
Biodiversity Heritage Library
Bladmineerders van Europa
British leafminers
Encyclopedia of Life
Fauna Europaea
NBN Atlas
NHM UK Checklist
Find using Google
Find using Google Scholar
Find images using Google


XHTML Validator
Last updated 10-Jul-2019 Brian Pitkin Top of page