Elachista bedellella [Lepidoptera: Elachistidae] in Leaf and stem mines of British flies and other insects

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

Elachista bedellella (Sircom, 1848)
[Lepidoptera: Elachistidae]

Grey Dwarf

Microsetia bedellella Sircom, 1848. Zoologist 6: 2037.
Elachista bedellella (Sircom, 1848).

Leaf-miner: Blotch in the leaf tip; the upper side is practically flat, the lower side can turn somewhat to purple. The larva may mine 2-3 leaves (Bladmineerders van Europa).

Larva: The larvae of moths have a head capsule and chewing mouthparts with opposable mandibles (see video of a gracillarid larva feeding), six thoracic legs and abdominal legs (see examples).

Larva young yellowish white, later grey green; head light brown; pronotum with two parallel length lines, slightly widening rearwards and divided by a narrow uncoloured stripe (Bladmineerders van Europa).

Pupa: The pupae of moths have visible head appendages, wings and legs which lie in sheaths (see examples).

Adult: The adult is not illustrated in UKMoths (check for update). The species is included in mothdissection.co.uk

Hosts in Great Britain and Ireland:

Poaceae
Avenula	pratense	Meadow Oat-grass		Pitkin & Plant

Hosts elsewhere:

Poaceae
Arrhenatherum	elatius	False Oat-grass	Bladmineerders van Europa
Avena			Bladmineerders van Europa
Avenula	pratense	Meadow Oat-grass	Bladmineerders van Europa
Festuca	ovina	Sheep's-fescue	Bladmineerders van Europa
Phleum			Bladmineerders van Europa
Poa	nemoralis	Wood Meadow-grass	Bladmineerders van Europa
Poa	trivialis	Rough Meadow-grass	Bladmineerders van Europa

Time of year - larvae: June-July (Bland, 1996a).

Time of year - adults: Currently unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: Britain including Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Dorset, Durham, East Norfolk, Isle of Wight, North Somerset, Shropshire, Stafford, West Gloucestershire and West Norfolk (NBN Atlas).

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, French mainland, Germany, Hungary, Italian mainland, Norwegian mainland, Poland, Romania, Russia - East, Slovakia, Spanish mainland, Sweden and Switzerland (Fauna Europaea).

NBN Atlas links to known host species:

Arrhenatherum elatius, Festuca ovina, Avenula pratensis, Poa nemoralis, Poa trivialis

British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere: Currently unknown.


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


	Last updated 17-Oct-2019 Brian Pitkin