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

 

LOBELIA. Lobelias. [Campanulaceae]


Six species of Lobelia are recorded in Britain. These include the native Water Lobelia (L. dortmanna) and the Heath Lobelia (L. urens).

Only one British miners are recorded on Lobelia.

A key to the European miners recorded on Lobelia is provided in Bladmineerders van Europa.

Heath Lobelia - Lobelia urens. Image: © Linda Pitkin
Heath Lobelia
Lobelia urens



Key for the identification of the known mines of British
insects (Diptera and non-Diptera) recorded on Lobelia


1 > Leaf-miner: A distinctive mine primarily above mid-rib, with irregular short lateral offshoots into leaf blade. Pupation external (Spencer, 1972: 51 (fig. 172), 55; Spencer, 1976: 270, 271 (fig. 486)).

Branched, whitish, upper-surface corridor; main axis overlying the midrib; side branches overlying the main lateral veins. (In Campanula and Phyteuma the mine is much less branched, sometimes nothing more than a corridor on top of the midrib). Frass in rather long strings. Usually the mines begins as a long and narrow, shallow, tortuous lower-surface corridor that ends upon the midrib but otherwise is not associated with the leaf venation. Often this initial corridor is filled with callus, and then even less conspicuous. Pupation outside the mine.

A linear mine on the upper surface, usually following the midrib and showing side branches along the veins. The frass is in strings.

Polyphagous. On more than 40 host genera in 15 families, but not yet on Lobelia, in Britain,. Widespread throughout Britain. Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland. Widespread in continental Europe.

Liriomyza strigata (Meigen, 1830) [Diptera: Agromyzidae].



XHTML Validator Last updated 05-Jul-2019  Brian Pitkin Top of page