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

  

Elachista bisulcella (Duponchel, 1843)
[Lepidoptera: Elachistidae]

Yellow-tipped Dwarf

Lita bisulcella Duponchel, 1843. Stett. ent. Zeits: 203.
Elachista bisulcella (Duponchel, 1843).

Leaf-miner: Mine a descending and widening corridor, in the end an elongate blotch that may occupy the entire width of the leaf. The mine contracts somewhat, narrowing the leaf. Frass in some elongate lumps in the centre of the mine (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).

The larva of bisulcella has body dull grey green with a narrow dorsal line; head pale brown with darker marking; prothoracic plate dark brown, irregularly divided (Bladmineerders van Europa).

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

Adult: The adult is illustrated in UKMoths by Mark Cubitt. The species is included in mothdissection.co.uk.

Comments: Festuca arundinacea is treated as Schedonorus arundinacea (Tall Fescue) by Stace (2010).

Hosts in Great Britain and Ireland:

Poaceae        
Deschampsia cespitosa Tufted Hair-grass British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Pitkin & Plant
Festuca arundinacea Tall Fescue British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Pitkin & Plant

Hosts elsewhere:

Cyperaceae        
Carex elata Tufted-sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Poaceae        
Brachypodium sylvaticum False Brome British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Calamagrostis epigejos Wood Small-reed British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Deschampsia cespitosa Tufted Hair-grass British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Festuca arundinacea Tall Fescue British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa

Time of year - larvae: Autumn till June; larvae hibernate in the mine (Bladmineerders van Europa).

Time of year - adults: Currently unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: Britain including Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Dorset, Dunbartonshire, Durham, Glamorgan, Haddington, Herefordshire, Hertfordshire, Huntingdonshire, Isle of Wight, Kincardineshire, Kirkudbrightshire, Leicestershire, Linlithgow, North Aberdeenshire, North Hampshire, North Somerset, North-east Yorkshire, Pembrokeshire, South Aberdeenshire, South Hampshire, South Northumberland, South Wiltshire, South-east Yorkshire, Stafford, West Gloucestershire, West Perth and Worcestershire (NBN Atlas).

Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland (Fauna Europaea and National Biodiversity Data Centre Map).

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Austria, Belgium, Corsica, Czech Republic, Danish mainland, Estonia, Finland, French mainland, Germany, Hungary, Italian mainland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norwegian mainland, Poland, Romania, Russia - Northwest, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland and The Netherlands (Fauna Europaea).

NBN Atlas links to known host species:

Brachypodium sylvaticum, Calamagrostis epigejos, Carex elata, Deschampsia cespitosa, Festuca arundinacea (= Schedonorus arundinacea)

British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere: Currently unknown.

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 17-Oct-2019  Brian Pitkin Top of page