Gall in flower heads. The only Aulacidea species known to induce hidden stem galls on Phlomis L. (Lamiaceae) is A. phlomica Belizin, 1959, however, A. diakontschukae strongly differs from it. Some other aylacine species are also induce stem galls on Phlomis L.: Panteliella fedtschenkoi (Rübsaamen, 1896), Phanacis phlomidis Belizin, 1959 and Rhodus oriundus Quinlan, 1968. Aulacidea phlomica, Panteliella fedtschenkoi and Phanacis phlomidis induce very similar galls which are nested in the stem of the plant and hard to distinguish, thus, adult wasps are necessary to distinguish which species caused them (Belizin, 1959; Quinlan, 1968). Rhodus oriundus Quinlan, 1968 was described from Greece and known to induce swelling-like galls in the apical buds of Phlomis cretica Presl.; later was also found on Salvia fruticosa Mill. in Israel (Lamiaceae) (Zerova et al., 2003). Within the Aulacidea genus, only two species are known to induce galls in flower heads: A. laurae Nieves-Aldrey, 1992 in Scorzonera laciniata (L.) (Asteraceae) (Nieves-Aldrey, 1992a, 2001a) and A. serratulae Diakontschuk, 1984 in Serratula bracteifolia (Iljin) Stank. (Asteraceae) (Diakontschuk, 1984). Thus, A. diakontschukae is the third Aulacidea species known to induce galls in flower heads and the second one, associated with Phlomis L. (Lamiaceae).
Biology. Monovoltine. Induces galls in flower heads of Phlomis tuberosa L. (Lamiaceae). Galls mature in autumn; adults emerge in spring next year (Melika & Klymenko, 2005).

[Aulacidea] diakontschukae Melika and Klymenko, 2005 Host plant: Phlomis tuberosa L.
(Lamiaceae).
Distribution: Palearctic, Ukraine.