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Photo#333457
Cecidomyiidae, Solidago flower galls - Rhopalomyia anthophila
Copyright © 2009 MJ Hatfield

Cecidomyiidae, Solidago flower galls - Rhopalomyia anthophila
Hawthorn Lake , Mahaska County, Iowa, USA
September 10, 2009
Size: 6+ mm
I've been seeing these galls on Goldenrod, Solidago sp., a lot this year. Gagne's book, "The Plant-Feeding Gall Midges of North America" keys: Solidago, bud or flower gall, galls cylindrical-not formed of leaf rosette, modified floret, gall widest at base-fuzzy = Rhopalomyia anthophilia. I'm most interested in the 2 larvae inside of the one gall I cut open: a fly and a parasitoid wasp perhaps?

Later: emergence of adult flies: and several parasitoids:
Pteromalidae Torymidae Platygastridae

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Cecidomyiidae, Solidago flower galls - Rhopalomyia anthophila Rhopalomyia anthophila, Solidago flower gall with 2 larvae - Rhopalomyia anthophila Rhopalomyia anthophila, Solidago flower gall with 2 larvae - Rhopalomyia anthophila Rhopalomyia anthophila larvae + parasitoid - Rhopalomyia anthophila Rhopalomyia anthophila larvae + parasitoid - Rhopalomyia anthophila Rhopalomyia anthophila pupa - Rhopalomyia anthophila
Contributed by MJ Hatfield on 15 September, 2009 - 9:26pm
Last updated 14 April, 2020 - 11:31am

Moved
Moved from ID Request.
… Beatriz Moisset, 24 September, 2009 - 11:45am

Rhopalomyia anthophila galls
Wow! that's the most amazing infestation of R. anthophila that I've seen. As part of my recent revision of this group of gall midges, I found this species only once in NY, where it was rather rare. Nice to know it occurs in such numbers elsewhere.
The white larva in the gall is that of the gall midge and the smaller, more orange larvae is a parasitoid.
… Netta Dorchin, 24 September, 2009 - 10:48am

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