Leaf-miner: The mine is brownish and extends along the midrib, sometimes
branching (British
leafminers).
Oviposition
on top of the midrib. Immediately after emergence the larva gnaws
a cavity in the midrib, and from there an irregular blotch is made
adjacent to the midrib. The larva continues living in the midrib
that is gradully hollowed out, making from there broad, brownish,
full depth excursions in the blade. The mine contains much frass;
most of it is concentrated in the area immediately bordering the
midrib. Older, no longer occupied parts of the mine often split
open. Mines mainly on the lower leaves. The slender larvae move
surprisingly fast upon disturbance; when they rest (in daytime)
they lie lengthwise in the hollowed midrib. Pupation outside 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 is illustrated in Bladmineerders van Europa.
Pupa: The pupae of moths have visible head appendages, wings and legs which lie in sheaths (see examples).
On the ground in the leaf litter (British
leafminers).
Adult:
The adult is illustrated in UKMoths. The species is included in mothdissection.co.uk.
Comments:
Records from Carlina vulgaris and Tussilago farfara
are probably incidental. Reports from Cnicus benedictus and
Onopordum are dubious. Records from Centaurea scabiosa
and Serratula tinctoria probably refer to Scrobipalpa
pauperella (Sattler, 1986a, Jansen, 1999a; Bland at al., 2002a).
Seen in this light also the references to Artemisia campestris
and Tanacetum vulgare (Elsner at al., 1999a) not very probable
(Bladmineerders van Europa).
Hosts in Great Britain and Ireland:
Hosts elsewhere:
Time
of year - larvae: July, September (British
leafminers).
Time
of year - adults: Generally there are two generations, with
adults on the wing in April to June and again in July to September
(UKMoths).
Distribution
in Great Britain and Ireland: Widely distributed across much
of the British Isles, this species occupies rough and open ground
where thistles abound (UKMoths)
including Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Breconshire, Buckinghamshire, Caernarvonshire, Cambridgeshire,
Carmarthenshire, Denbighshire, Dorset, Dunbartonshire, Durham, East Cornwall, East Kent, East Norfolk, East Suffolk, Easterness, Forfar, Glamorgan, Herefordshire, Hertfordshire,
Huntingdonshire, Isle of Wight, Kincardineshire, Kirkudbrightshire, Leicestershire, Linlithgow, Main Argyll, Mid-west Yorkshire, Middlesex, North Aberdeenshire, North Ebudes, North Hampshire, North Somerset, North Wiltshire, South Aberdeenshire, South Devon, South Hampshire, South Somerset, South Northumberland, South Wiltshire,
South-east Yorkshire, South-west Yorkshire, Stafford, Stirlingshire, West Cornwall, West Gloucestershire, West Lancashire, West Norfolk, West Perthshire, West SuffolWestmorland, Wigtownshire and Worcestershire (NBN
Atlas).
See also British
leafminers distribution map.
Distribution
elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Austria,
Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Corsica, Czech Republic, Danish mainland,
Estonia, European Turkey, Finland, French mainland, Germany, Greek
mainland, Hungary, Ireland, Italian mainland, Latvia, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, Macedonia, Norwegian mainland, Poland, Romania, Russia
- Central, East, North and South, Sicily, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spanish
mainland, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Ukraine (Fauna Europaea).
NBN Atlas links to known host species:
Carduus
acanthoides, Carduus
crispus, Carduus
nutans, Cirsium
acaule, Cirsium
arvense, Cirsium
eriophorum, Cirsium
erisithales, Cirsium
oleraceum, Cirsium
palustre, Cirsium
rivulare, Cirsium
vulgare, ? Tussilago
farfara |
British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere:
|