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Tag Archives: leafmines on Oak

Leafmines: Orchestes signifer

13 Monday Jun 2022

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

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British weevils, leafmines on Oak, Orchestes signifer, weevil, weevil leafmines

From my previous posts, including the recent A weirdness of weevils, I’m sure it’s obvious that I’m a huge fan of weevils, but I’d never given a thought to their life cycle until I found these leafmines. The mines are the work of the larvae of the weevil Orchestes signifer. The gallery mines follow the edges of Oak leaves before terminating in a small blotch. At that point, the larvae make themselves a case by cutting out the circular blotch, and, snugly encased, they drop to the ground to pupate. You can find a photo of the black-and-white adult weevil on the British Leafminers website.

220613 Orchestes signifer

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Leafmines: Acrocercops brongniardella

20 Monday Sep 2021

Posted by sconzani in insects, leaves, trees

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

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)

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About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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  • Scarlet tiger, deceased July 6, 2022
  • The chocolate butterfly July 5, 2022
  • Leafmines: Liriomyza eupatorii July 4, 2022
  • Oxeyes and friends July 3, 2022
  • Picture-winged flies on Burdock July 2, 2022

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