During our recent wet and windy weather I’ve taken to leaving my good camera at home, going out in wet weather gear with just my point-and-shoot camera tucked in a jacket pocket. As that camera is really only good for macro shots, I’ve been forced to look at things more closely – no bad thing, and, given the frequent heavy showers, I’ve been spending more time than usual sheltering under trees. And that, of course, means I’ve been looking at trunks and branches and leaves, which is how I came to notice these odd swellings on a Poplar tree in a local park. The aphid Pemphigus spyrothecae causes the leaf petiole to twist two or three times, forming a chamber in which the aphid’s larvae can develop. I didn’t open any of the galls but, if you want to see images of what’s inside, and read more about the life cycle of these aphids, the Influential Points website is the place to go.