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

 

NONEA. Noneas. [Boraginaceae]


Six species of Nonea are recorded in Britain. All are introduced.

Three British miners are recorded on Nonea.

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



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

1a > Leaf-miner and case-bearer: The larva feeds in a distinctive case made from hairy leaf fragments of the foodplant. The young larva feeds on the developing seeds and hibernates in its first case which is made of the tip of a petal. After hibernation it makes a hoary, laterally flattened composite leaf case (resembling a willow catkin). Full depth mines are made at the margin of the leaves, that thereby look peculiarly damaged. Mouth angle 70°. Initially forms a blotch mine, in the centre of a leaf, which it excises for its initial case. In the spring it repeatedly extends its case and it resembles a jagged catkin of willow. The larva may wander from its foodplant and attach to other plants or fences etc.

On Anchusa, Echium and Pentaglottis but not yet on Nonea, in Britain and Anchusa, Cynoglossum, Echium, Lithospermum, Myosotis, Nonea, Pentaglottis, Pulmonaria and Symphytum elsewhere. South-east England and East Anglia, with scattered records elsewhere including East Kent and East Sussex. Widespread in continental Europe.

Coleophora pennella (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775) [Lepidoptera: Coleophoridae].

1b > Leaf-miner: A narrow linear leaf-mine, which developes into a large blotch. Several larvae frequently feed together and the resulting mine can entirely fill the leaf (Spencer, 1976: 89).

The mine begins with a narrow, parallel sided corridor af 1-8 cm in length, with a nice double frass line. After the first moult the corridor is succeeded, and mostly overrun, by a large, primary, brown blotch. Frass in the initial corridor in short thread fragments, in the blotch in angular granules and thread fragments that often are branching (the frass is unusally sticky). Primary and secondary feeding lines conspicuous. The final mine often is very large and generally contains several larvae, because normally several mines develop on a leaf, and coalesce into one big blotch. Before pupation the larvae leave the mine through a semicircular exit slit that mostly, but not invariably, is in the upper epidermis.

The initial narrow gallery contains frass in a double line. It then expands to form a blotch mine. Several larvae may occupy a leaf to form a large blotch.

Polyphagous. On numerous genera of Boraginaceae, but not yet Nonea, in Britain, but on Nonea elsewhere. Widespread in Britain. Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland. Common and widespread throughout most of Europe.

Agromyza abiens Zetterstedt, 1848 [Diptera: Agromyzidae].

1c > Leaf-miner: Mine linear, whitish, both upper and lower surface. Pupation internal, at the end of the mine with the anterior spiracles projecting through the epidermis (Spencer, 1976: 433). Upper-surface, less often lower-surface corridor. Frass in isolated grains. Pupation within the mine, in a, usually lower-surface, pupal chamber. A long whitish upper surface corridor, which eventually goes lower surface.

Two highly polyphagous species of Chromatomyia, with indistinguishable mines, have been recorded in Britain. These are syngenesiae (Hardy) and horticola (Goureau) which can only be distinguished by the male genitalia. Both species are widespread in Britain and elsewhere, although syngenesiae is almost entirely restricted to Asteraceae. Records on Asteraceae not based on examination of male genitalia are treated in this account as Chromatomyia 'atricornis'.

Chromatomyia horticola is recorded on 55 plant genera in 19 families in Britain, but not yet on Nonea, in Britain, but on Nonea elsewhere.

Chromatomyia horticola (Goureau, 1851) [Diptera: Agromyzidae].


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