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

 

Callisto coffeella (Zetterstedt, 1839)
[Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae]

Highland Slender


Oecophora coffeella Zetterstedt, 1839. Ins. Lapp.: 1009.
Annickia alpicola
Gibeaux, 1990. Ent. Gall. 2: 23
Oecophora interruptella
Zetterstedt, 1839; [Synonymised by Benander, 1940. Opusc. ent. 5: 61].
Callisto coffeella
(Zetterstedt, 1839); Huemer, 1990. Nota lepid. 13: 133.


Leaf-miner: Feeds initially in an underside epidermal mine then folds the leaf down (British leafminers).

The larva first makes a distinctly folded lower-surface tentiform mine. After some time the mine is vacated and the larva lives free then in a leaf margin that has been folded downwards and is secured with silk. In small leaves the two halves are simply spun together in a pod. Two of these leaf folds are made and eaten out. The folds with the free living larva strongly resembly the work of a sawfly larva on the same plant; however, then no silk is used to anchor the leaf margin (Bland, 1993a) (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).

See Bland (1993a).

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

See Patocka and Turcáni (2005a).

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:

Salicaceae        
Salix       Pitkin & Plant
Salix phylicifolia Tea-leaved Willow   British leafminers

Hosts elsewhere:

Salicaceae        
Salix arbuscula Mountain Willow   Bladmineerders van Europa
Salix phylicifolia Tea-leaved Willow   Bladmineerders van Europa
Salix silesiaca     Bladmineerders van Europa

Time of year - larvae: July-August (British leafminers).

Time of year - adults: Currently unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: Britain including South Aberdeen (NBN Atlas). First discovered in Scotland in 1983 (British leafminers).

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, French mainland, Germany, Italian mainland, Norwegian mainland, Poland, Romania, Russia - North, Slovakia, Sweden and Ukraine (Fauna Europaea).

NBN Atlas links to known host species:

Salix arbuscula, Salix phylicifolia

British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere:

Ichneumonoidea - Links to species no longer available  
Diadegma callisto Horstmann, 1993 Ichneumonidae: Campopleginae


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