Dasineura plicatrix explained

Dasineura plicatrix is a species of gall midge, an insect in the family Cecidomyiidae, found in Europe. It was described by the German entomologist Friedrich Hermann Loew in 1850. The larvae feed within the tissue of bramble leaves, creating an abnormal growth known as a plant gall.

Description

Signs of Dasineura plicatrix are contorted, young bramble leaves, which are found in the spring and early summer. The leaves can be creased, pleated or pluckered, with thickened veins, and conspicuous black staining around the gall. The white larvae can be found until early summer when they drop out of the galls and pupate in the soil. There is disagreement in the literature as to whether there is a single generation a year or several per year. The gall is often overlooked as just a crumpled leaf.[1] [2] [3]

Galls have been found on the following species,[3]

Distribution

Found in Europe, it is common in Great Britain.[2]

Inquiline

Lestodiplosis plicatricis is an inquiline; a lodger or tenant of Dasineura plicatrix and live in the gall.[4]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Chinery . Michael . Britain's Plant Galls . 2011 . WildGuides Ltd . Old Basing, Hampshire . 978-190365743-0 . 38.
  2. Book: Redfern. Margaret. Shirley. Peter. Bloxham. Michael. British Plant Galls. 2011. FSC Publications. Shrewsbury. 978-1-85153-284-1. 275–6. Second.
  3. Web site: Ellis . W N . Dasineura plicatrix (Loew, 1850) . Plant Parasites of Europe . 28 January 2022.
  4. Web site: Ellis . W N . Lestodiplosis plicatricis Barnes, 1928 . Plant Parasites of Europe . 31 January 2022.