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

  

Coleophora spinella (Schrank, 1802)
[Lepidoptera: Coleophoridae]

Tinea spinella Schrank, 1802
Coleophora cerasivorella Packard, 1870. Ann. Rpt. Mass. Board. Agric.: 239
Coleophora spinella (Schrank, 1802).

Leaf-miner and case-bearer: Larva in autumn forming a few small mines. Feeding restarts in the same case in spring before changing to a new case by late April. In spring the cases or mines cannot be reliably separated from those of C. coracipennella or C. prunifoliae (British leafminers).

The larva lives two years. In the first year, in autumn, a composite leaf case is made that resembles a boomerang: front and rear end stand at almost right angles. In its second year the larva makes a trivalved tubular leaf case of about 6 mm, with a mouth angle of c. 45°; the case tapers somewhat to both ends (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).

Adult: The adult is illustrated in UKMoths and the Encyclopedia of Life. The species is included in mothdissection.co.uk.

Hosts in Great Britain and Ireland:

Rosaceae        
Cotoneaster       Pitkin & Plant
Crataegus       British leafminers
Crataegus       Pitkin & Plant
Malus       British leafminers
Malus       Pitkin & Plant
Prunus cerasus Dwarf Cherry British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Pitkin & Plant
Prunus spinosa Blackthorn British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Pitkin & Plant
Pyrus communis Pear Pitkin & Plant
Sorbus aria Common Whitebeam British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Pitkin & Plant
Sorbus aucuparia Rowan British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Pitkin & Plant

Hosts elsewhere:

Rosaceae        
Cotoneaster       Bladmineerders van Europa
Crataegus       Belgian Lepidoptera
Crataegus laevigata Midland Hawthorn British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Crataegus monogyna Hawthorn British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Cydonia oblonga Quince British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Malus       Belgian Lepidoptera
Malus pumila Apple British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al.

Bladmineerders van Europa, as Malus domestica
Mespilus germanica Medlar British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Prunus avium Wild Cherry British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Prunus cerasus Dwarf Cherry British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Prunus padus Bird Cherry British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Prunus spinosa Blackthorn British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa
Pyrus communis Pear Bladmineerders van Europa
Sorbus aucuparia Rowan British Wild Flowers by John Somerville et al. Bladmineerders van Europa

Time of year - larvae: Early September, then April to late May (British leafminers).

Time of year - adults: Currently unknown.

Distribution in Great Britain and Ireland: Britain including Anglesey, Bedfordshire, Caernarvonshire, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Denbighshire, Dorset, Durham, East Cornwall, East Kent, East Norfolk, East Suffolk, East Sussex, Flintshire, Glamorgan, Herefordshire, Hertfordshire, Huntingdonshire, Isle of Wight, Kirkcudbrightshire, Leicestershire, Merionethshire, Middlesex, North Hampshire, North Somerset, Northamptonshire, Pembrokeshire, Shropshire, South Essex, South Essex, South Hampshire, South Lancashire, South Northumberland, South Somerset, South-west Yorkshire, Stafford, Surrey, West Cornwall, West Gloucestershire, West Lancashire, West Kent, West Lancashire, West Norfolk, West Suffolk Westmorland and Worcestershire (NBN Atlas).

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

Distribution elsewhere: Widespread in continental Europe including Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Danish mainland, Estonia, Finland, French mainland, Germany, Italian mainland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norwegian mainland, Poland, Romania, Russia - Central and South, Slovakia, Spanish mainland, Sweden, Switzerland and The Netherlands. Also recorded in East Palaearctic, Near East and Nearctic region (Fauna Europaea).

NBN Atlas links to known host species:

Crataegus laevigata, Crataegus monogyna, Cydonia oblonga, Malus pumila, Prunus avium, Prunus cerasus, Prunus padus, Prunus spinosa, Pyrus communis, Sorbus aria, Sorbus aucuparia

British and Irish Parasitoids in Britain and elsewhere:

Ichneumonoidea - Links to species no longer available  
Therophilus dimidiator (Nees, 1834) Braconidae: Agathidinae
Orgilus rugosus (Nees, 1834) Braconidae: Orgilinae
Bathythrix thomsoni (Kerrich, 1942) Ichneumonidae: Cryptinae
Gelis areator (Panzer, 1804) Ichneumonidae: Cryptinae

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 11-Jul-2019  Brian Pitkin Top of page