Rhopalomyia lobata is a species of gall midges, insects in the family Cecidomyiidae. The galls form on stems and buds of Euthamia graminifolia the grass-leaved goldenrod . The species ranges from Florida to Mississippi, north to Oregon, New England and most of Canada.

Rhopalomyia lobata
Galls caused by Rhopalomyia lobata
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Family: Cecidomyiidae
Supertribe: Lasiopteridi
Tribe: Oligotrophini
Genus: Rhopalomyia
Species:
R. lobata
Binomial name
Rhopalomyia lobata
Felt, 1908

Galls and Biology

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The galls, which have multiple chambers, are created in both the apical and lateral buds. Some of these galls can be found in clusters near the shoot tip or in adjacent lateral buds. The spongy mass at the base of the gall gradually grows to a final size of 6 cm in diameter. The leaves encircling the mass are wider than the typical leaves of the plant, but they start to become loose in the second week of June. The whitish tissue is then visible, and there are 5-35 larval chambers embedded within. During late June to mid-July, the adults emerge, exposing the fleshy core of the gall. After the midges emerge, the gall turns black, and dry galls are present on the plants for several weeks. [1] [2] [3]

References

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  1. ^ Dorchin, Netta; McEvoy, Miles V.; Dowling, Todd A.; Abrahamson, Warren G.; Moore, Joseph G. (July 2009). "Revision of the goldenrod-galling Rhopalomyia species (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) in North America" (PDF). Zootaxa. 2152 (2152): 1–35. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.2152.1.1. S2CID 85821972.
  2. ^ Felt, Ephraim Porter (1917). "Key to American Insect Galls". New York State Museum Bulletin. 200: 95–97.
  3. ^ "Rhopalomyia lobata information page". gallformers. Retrieved 2023-03-28.
  • Gall-Inducing Insects: From Anatomy to Biodiversity [1]
  • A Catalog of the Cecidomyiidae (Diptera) of the World [2]


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  1. ^ Fernandes, G. W.; Carneiro, M. A. A.; Isaias, R. M. S. (March 2012). Gall-Inducing Insects: From Anatomy to Biodiversity (PDF). pp. 369–395. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  2. ^ Gagné, Raymond J.; Jaschhof, Mathias (2017). "A Catalog of the Cecidomyiidae (Diptera) of the World, Fourth Edition" (PDF). Agricultural Research Service, US Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2018-03-27.