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

 

Phyllonorycter scabiosella (Douglas, 1853)
[Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae]

Surrey Midget


Lithocolletis scabiosella Douglas, 1853. Trans. ent. Soc. Lond. (2) 2: 121 t. 13 fig. 2.
Phyllonorycter scabiosella
(Douglas, 1853).


Leaf-miner: Large, lower-surface tentiform mine with several folds that cause the leaf to contract strongly. Leaf around the mine often coloured violet. Pupa in a cocoon, frass in a corner of the mine. Mainly on seedlings and ground 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).

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:

Dipsacaceae        
Scabiosa columbaria Small Scabious British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Pitkin & Plant
Scabiosa columbaria Small Scabious British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. British leafminers

Hosts elsewhere:

Dipsacaceae        
Scabiosa columbaria Small Scabious British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa

Time of year - larvae: July - August and overwintering October-April (Bladmineerders van Europa).

Time of year - adults: Currently unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: Britain including North Somerset, Surrey and West Gloucestershire
(NBN Atlas).

See also British leafminers distribution map.

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Austria, Czech Republic, French mainland, Germany, Italian mainland, Poland, Russia - South, Slovakia, Spanish mainland, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Ukraine (Fauna Europaea).

NBN Atlas links to known host species:

Scabiosa columbaria

British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere:

Ichneumonoidea - Links to species no longer available  
Encrateola laevigata (Ratzeburg, 1848) Ichneumonidae: Cryptinae


External links: Search the internet:
Belgian Lepidoptera
Biodiversity Heritage Library
Bladmineerders van Europa
British leafminers
Encyclopedia of Life
Fauna Europaea
NBN Atlas
NHM UK Checklist
UKMoths
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Last updated 11-Jul-2019  Brian Pitkin Top of page