Aulacidea pilosellae (Kieffer, 1901)

Nomenclature: Aulax beijerinckii Kieffer, 1899 | Aulax pilosellae Kieffer, 1901

Feeds on: Induces galls on Pilosella Hill spp. [P officinarum added as a placeholder]

Distribution: United States (Possibly introduced)

Gall (Plate 8.6) on the main vein of leaves and/or on the midrib, monolocular, elliptical, 3.0- 4.0 mm long and 1.5 mm in diameter, soft, light green, slightly lignified swelling, with smooth surface; the leaf is not malformed outside. Galls usually located one after another, in a chain, sometimes galls are coalesced. The galling leaves usually dry out earlier than healthy ones.
Biology. Monovoltine. The reproduction is a thelytokous parthenogenesis exclusively (Nieves Aldrey, 2001a). Galls are visible on plants from June. Larvae overwintering in the gall and adults emerge next spring, in May (Zerova, Diakontschuk & Ermolenko, 1988). Host plants: Hieracium pilosella L., H. pratense Tausch., H. echioides W. et K., H. flagellare L., H. floribundum L. and H. cymosum L. (Kierych, 1979).

GALL
Pupation within the gall.

HOST PLANTS
Asteraceae, monophagous

Pilosella cymosa, echioides, flagellaris, floribunda, officinarum, onegensis.

PARASITOIDS, PREDATORS
Eupelmus messene; Eurytoma cynipsea; Pteromalus isarchus.

NOTES
The species is fully parthenogenetic, and can have several generations in a season

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