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

 

Cerodontha eucaricis Nowakowski, 1967
[Diptera: Agromyzidae]

Cerodontha (Butomyza) eucaricis Nowakowski, 1967. Polskie Pismo ent. 37(4): 636
Cerodontha (Butomyza) eucaricis Nowakowski, 1967; Nowakowski, 1972. Polskie Pismo ent. 42(4): 753
Cerodontha (Butomyza) eucaricis Nowakowski, 1967; Spencer, 1972b. Handbk ident. Br. Ins. 10(5g): 96 (fig. 333), 100
Cerodontha (Butomyza) eucaricis Nowakowski, 1967; Spencer, 1976. Fauna ent. Scand. 5(1): 206, fig. 358.
Cerodontha (Butomyza) eucaricis Nowakowski, 1967; Spencer, 1990. Host specialization in the world Agromyzidae (Diptera) : 347, 348 (fig. 1319), 351, 380.


Leaf-miner: Linear mine. Pupation either in the leaf at end of mine or externally (Spencer, 1976: 207).

Mine upper-surface, in the central part of the blade. Frass in a few large lumps; often all frass still is contained in the larva's intestine. Larva solitary. Puparium in the mine, fixed ventrally with dried frass (Bladmineerders van Europa).

Larva: The larvae of flies are leg-less maggots without a head capsule (see examples). They never have thoracic or abdominal legs. They do not have chewing mouthparts, although they do have a characteristic cephalo-pharyngeal skeleton (see examples), usually visible internally through the body wall.

Puparium: The puparia of flies are formed within the hardened last larval skin or puparium and as a result sheaths enclosing head appendages, wings and legs are not visible externally (see examples).

Dark brown; posterior spiracles arising from a common projection, one bulb being long, hook-like, with the lower two ones small (Spencer, 1976: 207). The puparium is illustrated in Bladmineerders van Europa.

Cerodontha (Butomyza) eucaricis puparium
Cerodontha (Butomyza) eucaricis puparium
Image: © Willem Ellis (Bladmineerders van Europa)

Hosts in Great Britain and Ireland:

Cyperaceae        
Carex acutiformis Lesser Pond-sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Spencer, 1972b: 122
Carex pseudocyperus Cyperus Sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Spencer, 1972b: 122

Hosts elsewhere:

Cyperaceae        
Carex       Spencer, 1990: 347
Carex acuta Slender Tufted-sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Carex acutiformis Lesser Pond-sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Carex flacca Glaucous Sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Carex hirta Hairy Sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Carex paniculata Greater Tussock-sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Carex pilosa     Spencer, 1976: 206
Carex pseudocyperus Cyperus Sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Carex pseudocyperus Cyperus Sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Spencer, 1976: 206
Carex riparia Greater Pond-sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Carex vesicaria Bladder-sedge British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa

Time of year - mines: June to September (Bladmineerders van Europa).

Time of year - adults: Currently unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: Huntingdonshire (Woodwalton Fen), Surrey and Glamorgan (Spencer, 1972b: 100).

Distribution elsewhere: Not uncommon in Europe including Sweden, Finland, Germany, Poland (Spencer, 1976: 206), The Netherlands (Bladmineerders van Europa), Belgium (Scheirs, de Bruyn and von Tschirnhaus, 1999), Germany (Spencer, 1976: 554), Czech Republic, French mainland, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia (Fauna Europaea).

Also recorded in Canada (Spencer, 1976: 206).

NBN Atlas links to known host species:

Carex acuta, Carex acutiformis, Carex flacca, Carex hirta, Carex paniculata, Carex riparia, Carex pseudocyperus, Carex vesicaria

British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere:

Ichneumonoidea - Links to species no longer available  
Chorebus nobilis Griffiths, 1968 Braconidae: Alysiinae
Eurytenes abnormis (Wesmael, 1835) Braconidae: Opiinae


External links: Search the internet:
Biodiversity Heritage Library
Bladmineerders van Europa
British leafminers
Encyclopedia of Life
Fauna Europaea
NBN Atlas
NHM UK Checklist
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Find images using Google


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