Leafmines: Bucculatrix ulmella

05 Monday Dec 2022

Posted by sconzani in leaves, insects, trees

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moth cocoon, leaf-mining moth, British leafminers, leafmining moth larvae, cocoon on Oak leaf, Bucculatrix ulmella

This new-to-me species was the result of a recent session turning over Oak leaves to see what might be lurking beneath. I didn’t actually find the leafmines for this creature but rather, on adjacent trees, two empty cocoons – the tiny moths (pictured on the UK Moths website) that were metamorphosing inside had already hatched and flown (you can see part of the pupal case poking out of one cocoon). The ribbing on the cocoon points to this being one of Bucculatrix genus of moths and the fact that these were on Oak gives a positive identification of Bucculatrix ulmella (don’t be fooled by the specific name ulmella, which would appear to indicate the larvae feed on Elm – the species has apparently been misnamed).

221205 Bucculatrix ulmella

Leafmines: Phyllocnistis saligna

03 Monday Oct 2022

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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British moths, leaf-mining moth, leafmines on narrow-leaved willow, leafmining moth larvae, Phyllocnistis saligna, Phyllocnistis saligna leafmines, Willow bent-wing leafmines

A new month, a new leafmine challenge, and it’s got off to a very successful start for me. But let’s start at the beginning …
Our locally based Senior ecologist with Butterfly Conservation, George, kickstarted the challenge with a couple of tweets and some photos last Friday evening:

Ok #TeamLeafmine here’s another recent S. Wales colonist to look for; an easy one to identify too. Phyllocnistis saligna mines narrow-leaved willows, unusual because it mines both leaves & young stems. 3 recent records by the Taff in North Cardiff, must be out there elsewhere!

Cocoons are formed in a turned over leaf edge, see 3rd photo in original tweet. Quite a few Gwent records from the Levels and Monmouth/Abergavenny, also new to Carmarthenshire in 2021. Must be in & around Cardiff Bay! More info here: http://leafmines.co.uk/html/Lepidoptera/P.saligna.htm

221003 Phyllocnistis saligna (2)

I didn’t have any firm plans for Saturday’s walk so wended my merry way along the edges of the two local rivers, the Ely and the Taff. I soon realised that this challenge will be a little more difficult than previous ones, as narrow-leaved willows were few and far between and, when found, often inaccessible. However, I did manage to find mines in two locations along the River Taff, which has encouraged me to continue my search further up the river very soon. And, though I hope to find more mines, I doubt I’ll find one of the very lovely little adult Phyllocnistis saligna moths, the wonderfully named Willow bent-wings, which you can see on the UK Moths website.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Leafmines: Lyonetia clerkella

24 Monday Jan 2022

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Apple leaf miner, leaf mines, leaf-mining moth, leaf-mining moth larvae, Lyonetia clerkella

I didn’t expect to post about any leafminers for a while but saw these mines on a Cherry laurel hedge I passed yesterday and realised this was one I hadn’t shared before. Though the mines are now empty and the moth pupae tucked up cosily in their cocoons for the winter, the mines created by the larvae are still visible.

220124 Lyonetia clerkella (1)

These are the mines of the Apple leaf miner moth (Lyonetia clerkella). As the name suggests, the larvae of this moth mine the leaves of Apple and other fruit trees, as well as quite a long list of other plant species. You can read more about them on the British leafminers website and see the tiny adult moth on the UK Moths website.

220124 Lyonetia clerkella (2)

Leafmines: Bucculatrix thoracella

22 Monday Nov 2021

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, plants

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British leafminers, Bucculatrix thoracella, leaf-mining moth, leaf-mining moth larvae, leafmines on lime

I found these mines on Lime leaves a few weeks ago but they will still be visible on the yellowing leaves, just not occupied any more. The tiny white tick shape is distinctive, making it easy to identify these as the mines of the little brown and yellow moth Bucculatrix thoracella.

After the ‘tick’ has been formed, the moth larvae graze beneath the leaves, creating small bare areas known as feeding windows. When they moult, the larvae retreat to cocoons – one of the leafmining experts calls them ‘cocoonets’ (shown below), but their final cocoons can be found either in the leaf litter below the tree or on the Lime’s trunk. I’ve yet to find one of those.

Leafmines: Phyllonorycter platani

01 Monday Nov 2021

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British leafmines, leaf mines, leaf-mining moth, leaf-mining moth larvae, leafmines on Plane trees, Phyllonorycter platani, Plane trees

Another #LeafmineMonday, another new leafmine discovery – new to me, that is, not to science or Wales.

Top of leaf on the left; underside on the right

This is another mine that’s created by the larva of a moth, the rather handsome micro moth Phyllonorycter platani, whose larvae feed on the leaves of Plane trees. This moth only appeared in Britain 30 years ago – as it can be found in many countries around the globe, it’s not possible to say where it came from or how it got to London but, since 1989, it has colonised much of southern Britain. Of course, no one knows how it’s managed that either, though I did read some speculation on Twitter that, as the first Cardiff records were noted very near the main car and coach parks, the moths could well have hitched a ride on passing vehicles. As I’ve sometimes seen small moths on trains, I can quite believe that possibility.

Leafmines: Coleophora badiipennella

25 Monday Oct 2021

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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Case-bearing moth, Coleophora badiipennella, leaf-mining moth, leafminer, leafmines on Wych elm, Pale elm case-bearer

This might not look like much but I’ve been looking for one of these for perhaps a year, at least during the months when it was around to be found. And if I hadn’t been looking closely at the leaves of this Wych elm, I could so easily have missed it. These are the leafmine and the case of Coleophora badiipennella, the Pale Elm Case-bearer (click on the link here to see the adult moth on the UK Moths website).

According to the British Leafminers website, the larva:

initially forms a gallery along the midrib, which then goes out along a vein (see photo). The end of this gallery is then excised to construct the first case. It then feeds close to this and makes several small mines …

211025 coleophora badiipennalla (2)

If you look at my photo above, you can see where the larva has made a second mine below the first – you can see the tiny hole where it would have attached itself – before moving to the third mine where it was then feeding. I haven’t been able to find much information about pupation but I presume the larva remains in its case, falls to the ground either still attached to its leaf when the leaf falls or after detaching itself, and over-winters on the ground. It seems many of these leafminers are not very well studied … yet.

Leafmines: Coleophora peribenanderi

18 Monday Oct 2021

Posted by sconzani in autumn, insects, plants

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British leafminers, British moths, case-bearing moths, Coleophora peribenanderi, leaf-mining larvae, leaf-mining moth, moth larvae on thistles, Pale Thistle case-bearer

Searching for leafmines on thistles is not for the faint-hearted, writes she with multi-punctured fingers. But it has been worth every drop of blood to find these mines (and I must be a masochist, as, having found them in one place, I then went determinedly searching in other locations – two successes so far, which I’m rather pleased about as there are very few records in south Wales).

211018 Coleophora peribenanderi (1)

The larvae of the moth Coleophora peribenanderi, also known as the Pale Thistle case-bearer (you can see the adult on UK Moths here), builds itself a tube-like case to live in and ventures out of said case to munch happily on the leaves of whichever species of thistle its mother laid her eggs on (in the three I’ve found so far, Creeping thistle). The marks this feeding makes on the plant’s leaves are quite distinctive but, to clinch the identification, you need to look under the leaf and find the case.

211018 Coleophora peribenanderi (2)

Interestingly, the larva feeds up for a couple of months, from July to September, then suspends its development (the scientific word is diapause, a new one for me) through the winter until either feeding up a bit more in April or passing straight to pupation in May. Fascinating stuff!

Leafmines: Stigmella plagicolella

04 Monday Oct 2021

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves

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British leaf mines, leaf-mining larvae, leaf-mining moth, leaf-mining moth larvae, leafminers, leafmines on Blackthorn, Stigmella plagicolella

Rob Edmunds, one of the people behind the British Leafminers website, labelled these leafmines ‘tadpoles’ and, as you can see, it’s a very apt description. They are also tiny, as these mines appear on Blackthorn or Sloe (Prunus spinosa), the leaves of which are only 2 – 4cms long.

211004 Stigmella plagicolella (1)

The adults of the moth Stigmella plagicolella, also known as the Scrubland Pigmy, are active twice each year, firstly in May and June, and then again in August, so their larval mines can be seen soon after those periods, in July and then again during September and October. So, this is a mine to look out for when all you gin drinkers out there are collecting the fruit to make Sloe gin.

Leafmines: Acrocercops brongniardella

20 Monday Sep 2021

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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Acrocercops brongniardella, British leafminers, Holm oak, leaf-mining moth, leafmines, leafmines on Oak

Another Monday, another leaf-mining moth. This one goes by the tongue-twisting name of Acrocercops brongniardella and can be found on the leaves of Oak trees, mostly in southern parts of England, Wales and Ireland. The adult moth is a very smart-looking creature (see the photos on the UK Moths website).

210920 acrocercops brongniardella (1)

Fortunately, the larval leafmines are fairly easy to identify as they begin with a distinctive twist before broadening to a large blotch or blister.

210920 acrocercops brongniardella (2)

I found my very first Acrocercops brongniardella mines in a small area of woodland on 6 September and have since found more on a tree in a local park, both times on the evergreen Holm oak (Quercus ilex) and the latter rather abundant on leaves at the tips of lower branches. The mines can supposedly be found on all oak species, though I’ve failed to find them in the other local woodlands where I’ve recently been walking and there are not a lot of records for this species of Wales. I’ll be keeping an eye out for more.

210920 acrocercops brongniardella (3)

Leafmines: Phyllonorycter coryli

13 Monday Sep 2021

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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leaf-mining moth, leafmines, leafmines on Hazel, moth larvae in leaf mines, moth leafmines, Phyllonorycter coryli

For those of you who are new to leafmines, here’s one that’s appearing on leaves right about now, is common in Britain and easy to identify.

210913 phyllonorycter coryli (1)

These blisters on Hazel leaves are made by the larvae of the perfectly named Nut leaf blister moth (Phyllonorycter coryli) – you can see what the adult moth looks like on the UK Moths website. In fact, if you’re sharp-eyed, you may have noticed these blisters in July, as this little moth has two broods each year. You can get more details and see more images on the excellent British Leafminers website.