Twig-miner:
A long black straight gallery which passes down the twig initially.
The mine then changes direction and the spaces between the ridges
stain black as the mine fills them. The branches may appear stained
black as the mines develop. (British
leafminers).
The
larva mines not in leaves, but under the bark of twigs of broom.
The mine is visible as a dark gallery, but is easily confused with
the similar mine of Leucoptera
spartifoliella (UKMoths).
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 yellow (British
leafminers).
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. The species is included in mothdissection.co.uk.
Hosts in Great Britain and Ireland:
Hosts
elsewhere:
Time
of year - larvae: Seeptember to May (British
leafminers).
Time
of year - adults: June to August (UKMoths).
Distribution
in Great Britain and Ireland: Widespread in Britain including
Anglesey, Bedfordshire, Caernarvonshire, Denbighshire, Dorset, East Cornwall, East Kent, East Norfolk, East Ross, East Suffolk, Easterness, Elgin, Haddington, Herefordshire, Isle of Wight, Kincardineshire,
Kirkudbrightshire, Linlithgow, Middlesex, North Aberdeenshire, North Hampshire, North Northumberland, Pembrokeshire, Shropshire, South Aberdeenshire, South Northumberland, Stafford, Stirlingshire, West Cornwall, West Norfolk, West Perthshire, West Suffolk, Westmorland and
Worcestershire (NBN
Atlas) and the Channel Islands (Fauna Europaea).
See also British
leafminers distribution map.
Also
recorded in the Republic of Ireland (Fauna Europaea and National Biodiversity Data Centre Map).
Distribution
elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Austria,
Belgium, Czech Republic, Danish mainland, French mainland, Germany,
Italian mainland, Poland, Portuguese mainland, Slovakia, Spanish
mainland, Sweden, Switzerland and The Netherlands (Fauna Europaea).
NBN Atlas links to known host species:
British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere: Currently unknown.
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