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(Coleoptera, Diptera, Hymenoptera and Lepidoptera)
by
Brian Pitkin, Willem Ellis, Colin Plant and Rob Edmunds
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AGROSTEMMA.
Corncockle. [Caryophyllaceae]
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Two
species of Agrostemma, Corncockle (A. githago) and
A. gracilis, are recorded in Britain. Both are introduced,
although Corncockle is now apparently rare in the wild.
Four British miners are recorded on Agrostemma.
A key to the European miners recorded on Agrostemma is provided in Bladmineerders van Europa. |
 Corncockle
Agrostemma githago |
Key for the identification of the known mines of British
insects (Diptera and non-Diptera) recorded on Agrostemma
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1a > Leaf and stem miner: Eggs
are scattered individually over the leaf upper surface; they are
only loosely attached to the plant. The egg shell has a honeycomb
structure. The larva begins with first mining one of the top leaves
completely out. Next the larva moves down to another leaf, by way
of a tunnel made in the stem. In this way several leaves are mined
out, completely and full depth. In the attacked part of the plant
the stem has become translucent; the damage causes the plant tip
to wilt. In the first mines almost no frass is to be found, further
down it is deposited in coarse grains. Pupation generally outside
the mine (Miles, 1953). |
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On
? Agrostemma, ? Arenaria, Cerastium, ? Dianthus, ? Gypsophila, ? Lychnis,
? Saponaria, Silene, ? Spergularia, ? Stellaria and Vaccaria [Caryophyllaceae], Atriplex, ? Chenopodium, Spinacia [Chenopodiaceae], ? Phlox [Polemoniaceae] in Britain.
Also recorded on other hosts elsewhere. Known only from Warwick
and West Ross in Britain, Europe, Japan, Canada and Alaska.
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Delia echinata (Seguy, 1923) [Diptera: Anthomyiidae]. |
1b > Leaf-miner: A
white linear-blotch mine, the linear section sometimes not detectable
as it becomes enveloped in later blotch (Spencer,
1976: 162-3, figs 296-7).
Upper-surface,
less often lower-surface, corridor, followed, and often overrun,
by a large blotch. Even when the corridor is overun, it usually
remains recognisable in the frass pattern. The mine looks whitish
in the field. The blotch does not contain much frass, in the form
of small black grains, dispersed and stuck to the floor of the mine.
Feeding punctures upper-surface (always?). Pupation outside the
mine.
A common miner, forming a white linear blotch mine (the blotch may obscure the linear portion of the mine) in both native and garden plants. |
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On Agrostemma, Dianthus, Lychnis, Saponaria, Silene, Stellaria [Caryophyllaceae] and Atriplex, Beta and Spinacia, but not yet on Agrostemma, [Chenopodiaceae] in Britain. Widespread in Britain and continental
Europe. Also Canada.
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Amauromyza
flavifrons (Meigen, 1830) [Diptera: Agromyzidae]. |
1c > Leaf-miner: Corridor-blotch
mine. The
mine starts as a long, narrow, winding corridor running towards
the midrib, widening to a blotch. Usually upper-surface, but in
small leaves also full-depth parts may occur. The blotch has broad
lobes; in their ends most frass is accumulated in the form of green
patches or clouds. Sometimes several larvae share mine. Pupation
usually in the soil, less often in the leaf (and then generally
not in the mine itself but in a small separated mine, that may even
be made in the petiole). |

Mine of Scaptomyza graminum on Cerastium glomeratum
Image: © Jean-Yves Baugnée (Bladmineerders van Europa) |
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On
? Amaranthus, Cerastium, Lychnis, Myosoton, Nasturtium, Silene, Stellaria, Atriplex,
? Anthyllis, ? Lupinus,
? Medicago, ? Montia and ? Antirrhinum, but not yet on Agrostemma, in Britain.
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Scaptomyza
graminum (Fallén, 1823) [Diptera: Drosophilidae]. |
1d > Leaf-miner: In the first instar the larva mines the leaves, forming short, irregular, blotch-like mines, but in later instars it lives externally, feeding in spun leaves and often twisting those of tender shoots. Larval head light-brown or yellowish brown, edged with black postero-laterally, ocellar area blackish; prothoracic plate black edged with whitish anteriorly; abdomen dull dark green; pinacula distinct, black, sometimes brownish but with black bases to setae; anal plate large, black (Bradley et al., 1973).
Small, full depth mine without a definite shape; little frass. Some silk is deposited in the mine. The larva soon leaves the mine and continues feeding among spun leaves. |
Polyphagous. On numerous genera and species of several plant families, but not yet on Agrostemma, in Britain. On numerous genera and species of several plant families, including Agrostemma, elsewhere. Widespread in Britain and continental Europe. Also recorded from the Channel Is.
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Cnephasia incertana (Treitschke, 1835) [Lepidoptera: Tortricidae] |
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