Beta [Chenopodiaceae] in Leaf and stem mines of British flies and other insects

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

BETA. Beets. [Chenopodiaceae]

Beet (B. vulgaris) and Sea Beet (B. vulgaris maritima) are native to Britain. Caucasian Beet (B. trigyna), Foliage Beet (B. vulgaris cicla) and Root Beet (B. vulgaris vulgaris) have been introduced.

Twelve British miners are recordedd on Beta.

Although previously recorded as a miner on Beta, Botanophila fugax is a common saprophagous species, the larvae normally feeding in the soil (G.C.D.Griffiths, pers. comm.).

A key to the European miners recorded on Beta is provided in Bladmineerders van Europa.

Beet
Beta vulgaris

Key for the identification of the known mines of British insects (Diptera and non-Diptera) recorded on Beta
1# > ? Leaf-miner: Not distinguishable from the mines of P. betae or P. hyoscyami.
On Chenopodium and Solanum, but not yet on Beta, in Britain, plus Beta elsewhere. Widespread in continental Europe.
Pegomya interruptella (Zetterstedt, 1855) [Diptera: Anthomyiidae].
1a > Leaf-miner: A distinctive mine primarily above mid-rib, with irregular short lateral offshoots into leaf blade. Pupation external (Spencer, 1972: 51 (fig. 172), 55; Spencer, 1976: 270, 271 (fig. 486)). Branched, whitish, upper-surface corridor; main axis overlying the midrib; side branches overlying the main lateral veins. (In Campanula and Phyteuma the mine is much less branched, sometimes nothing more than a corridor on top of the midrib). Frass in rather long strings. Usually the mines begins as a long and narrow, shallow, tortuous lower-surface corridor that ends upon the midrib but otherwise is not associated with the leaf venation. Often this initial corridor is filled with callus, and then even less conspicuous. Pupation outside the mine. A linear mine on the upper surface, usually following the midrib and showing side branches along the veins. The frass is in strings.

Polyphagous. On more than 40 host genera in 15 families, but not yet on Beta, in Britain,. Widespread throughout Britain. Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland. Widespread in continental Europe.
*Liriomyza strigata* (Meigen, 1830) [Diptera: Agromyzidae].
1b > Leaf-miner: Broad mine of variable depth. Frass spread irregularly. Pupation usually internal, seldom external.
On ? Atriplex, ? Beta, ? Salicornia, ? Spergularia and ? Sueada in Britain plus Obione elsewhere. Recorded in Britain and the Republic of Ireland (Zatwarnicki, 2004 in Fauna Europaea). Widespread in continental Europe.
Clanoneurum cimiciforme (Haliday, 1855) [Diptera: Ephydridae].
1c > Leaf-miner: Blotch mines, generally occupying an entire leaf, usually containing several larvae. Much, half deliquescent, green frass. Mine indistinguishable from P. exilis or P. hyoscyami.



On Atriplex, Beta and ? Polygonum, but not yet on Solanum, in Britain and additionally Silene and Spinacia [Caryophyllaceae], Chenopodium, Atropa, Hyoscyamus and Solanum [Solanaceae] in continental Europe. Only recorded from Warwick in Britain. Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland, Europe, the East Palaearctic and Nearctic Regions. Widespread in continental Europe including Balearic Is., Canary Is., Czech Republic, Danish mainland, Finland, Greek mainland, Hungary, Italian mainland, Malta, Norwegian mainland, Russia (Central), Sweden, East Palaearctic, Near East, North Africa (Michelsen in Fauna Europaea).
Pegomya betae (Curtis, 1847) [Diptera: Anthomyiidae].
1d > Leaf-miner: Mine indistinguishable from that of P. hyoscyami. A large blotch mine, often with several larvae, beginning with a short deeper corridor at a single egg shell on the surface of the leaf. The broad deep corridor later ends in a blotch but can be recognised (beneath the blotch) by its greater depth. Mine predominantly dorsal or ventral, greenish in transmitted light. Frass grains irregularly scattered except in the initial corridor.
On ? Beta and ? Chenopodium in Britain and elsewhere. Widespread in Britain incluidng Easterness (VC96), North Devon (VC4), South Lancaster and West Suffolk (VC26) (NBN Gateway). Widespread in continental Europe
Pegomya conformis (Fallén, 1825) [Diptera: Anthomyiidae]
1e > Leaf-miner: The larva makes several full depth blotch mines.
Hosts in Britain unknown. On Atriplex, Beta, Chenopodium and Spinacia elsewhere.
Pegomya cunicularia (Rondani, 1866) [Diptera: Anthomyiidae].
1f > Leaf-miner: A large blotch mine, often with several larvae, beginning with a short deeper corridor at a single egg shell on the surface of the leaf. The broad deep corridor later ends in a blotch but can be recognised (beneath the blotch) by its greater depth. Mine predominantly dorsal or ventral, greenish in transmitted light. Frass grains irregularly scattered except in the initial corridor.


On Silene, Atriplex, Beta, Chenopodium and ? Solanum in Britain and additional genera of Chenopodiaceae and Solanaceae elsewhere. Known only from Inner Hebrides, Ayr and Warwick in Britain. Also recorded in continental Europe and the East Palaearctic.
Pegomya hyoscyami (Panzer, 1809) [Diptera: Anthomyiidae].
1g > Leaf-miner: A white linear-blotch mine, the linear section sometimes not detectable as it becomes enveloped in later blotch (Spencer, 1976: 162-3, figs 296-7). Upper-surface, less often lower-surface, corridor, followed, and often overrun, by a large blotch. Even when the corridor is overun, it usually remains recognisable in the frass pattern. The mine looks whitish in the field. The blotch does not contain much frass, in the form of small black grains, dispersed and stuck to the floor of the mine. Feeding punctures upper-surface (always?). Pupation outside the mine. A common miner, forming a white linear blotch mine (the blotch may obscure the linear portion of the mine) in both native and garden plants.The mine is also illustrated in the Encyclopedia of Life. Puparium reddish brown

On Agrostemma, Atriplex, Beta, Dianthus, Lychnis, Saponaria, Silene, Spinacia and Stellaria in Britain. Widespread in Britain and continental Europe. Also Canada.
Amauromyza flavifrons (Meigen, 1830) [Diptera: Agromyzidae].
1h > Leaf-miner: A short, irregular, linear upper surface mine on any part of the leaf. Also recorded from young pods (Bland, 1997a). Long corridor mine. As a rule the first part of the mine is lower-surface, the later part upper-surface. Often the loops are so dense that a secondary blotch is the result. Because upper- and lower-surface corridor segments often cross, the mine obtains a strange array of transparant patches. There is no association with the midrib. Frass in strings and thread fragments. Pupation outside the mine; exit slit in upper epidermis. Mine not associated with the veins or midrib of the leaf (It is this character which enables distinction from another Agromyzid pest species - Liriomyza huidobriensis). The larvae may leave one leaf (if not large enough) and enter another leaf, via the petiole). It exits the leaf to pupate through a semi-circular slit in the upper surface of the leaf.



Polyphagous. On 119 plant genera in 31 plant families of which only 4 plant genera in 2 plant families, but not yet on Beta, in Britain. On Beta elsewhere. Local, probably introduced to Britain. Widespread in continental Europe particularly in Botanical Gardens and glasshouses. Also recorded in Egypt.
Liriomyza bryoniae (Kaltenbach, 1858) [Diptera: Agromyzidae].
1i > Leaf-miner: The first instar larva tends to make a U-shaped mine, whereas later larvae make irregular mines. Final instar larvae spin the leaves together and feed in a silken tube amongst the seeds. Young larvae make a short, spiralled corridor typically U-shaped). This stage is followed by an irregular, sometimes branching, greenish-white blotch. In their final stage the larva lives free in a silken tunnel among the leaves. Pupation in a cocoon of sand grains and detritus.

Scrobipalpa nitentella larva, dorsal Image: © Willem Ellis (Bladmineerders van Europa)
On Cakile, Atriplex, Beta, Chenopodium, Salicornia, Sarcocornia and Suaeda in Britain.and Atriplex, Beta, Chenopodium, Salicornia and Suaeda elsewhere. One of the commonest gelechid moths on saltings in the British Isles. Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland. Widespread in continental Europe.
Scrobipalpa nitentella (Fuchs, 1902) [Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae].
1j > Leaf-miner: Young larvae bore in the midrib, later they mine the leaf from a web spun over of the leaf.
On Beta vulgaris ssp. maritima in Britain and ? Atriplex, Beta, ? Salicornia and ? Suaeda elsewhere. Widespread in southern England. Also recorded in the Republic of Ireland. Widespread in continental Europe.
Scrobipalpa ocellatella (Boyd, 1858) [Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae].
1k > Leaf-miner: The mine starts as a long, narrow, winding corridor running towards the midrib, widening to a blotch. Usually upper-surface, but in small leaves also full-depth parts may occur. The blotch has broad lobes; in their ends most frass is accumulated in the form of green patches or clouds. Sometimes several larvae share mine. Pupation usually in the soil, less often in the leaf (and then generally not in the mine itself but in a small separated mine, that may even be made in the petiole).
Mine of Scaptomyza graminum on Cerastium glomeratum Image: © Jean-Yves Baugnée (Bladmineerders van Europa)

On ? Amaranthus, Cerastium, Lychnis, Myosoton, Nasturtium, Silene, Stellaria, Atriplex, ? Anthyllis, ? Lupinus, ? Medicago, ? Montia and ? Antirrhinum, but not yet on Beta, in Britain. On Amaranthus, Lepidium, Moricandia, ? Rorippa, Agrostemma, Arenaria, Cerastium, Corrigiola, Cucubalus, Dianthus, Gypsophila, Lychnis, Moehringia, Myosoton, Polycarpon, Saponaria, Silene, Spergularia, Stellaria, Vaccaria, Viscaria, Atriplex, Beta, Chenopodium, Obione, Salicornia, Spinacia, Anthyllis, Lupinus, Medicago, Allium, Montia, Portulaca and Antirrhinum elsewhere. Widespread in Britain and continental Europe.
Scaptomyza graminum (Fallén, 1823) [Diptera: Drosophilidae].


	Last updated 01-Jul-2019 Brian Pitkin