Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods) ➔ Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods) ➔ Class Insecta (Insects) ➔ Order Diptera (True flies) ➔ Family Agromyzidae (Leaf-miner flies)

Phytoliriomyza melampyga (Loew, 1869)

Springkraut-Minierfliege Jewelweed Leafminer

Synonyms and other combinations:

Agromyza flaviventris Johnson, 1902 |

  • Phytoliriomyza melampyga 6339
    Phytoliriomyza melampyga (Loew, 1869)  Springkraut-Minierfliege  Jewelweed Leafminer 
    Phytoliriomyza melampyga, det. mcerny
    DE, Chemnitz, Hutholz; 2013-08-31 12:09:19
    Image number: 6339

    DE, Chemnitz, Hutholz
    2013-08-31 12:09:19
    det. mcerny
  • Phytoliriomyza melampyga 6340
    Phytoliriomyza melampyga (Loew, 1869)  Springkraut-Minierfliege  Jewelweed Leafminer 
    Phytoliriomyza melampyga, det. mcerny
    DE, Chemnitz, Hutholz; 2013-08-31 12:08:09
    Image number: 6340

    DE, Chemnitz, Hutholz
    2013-08-31 12:08:09
    det. mcerny

Classification:
Phytoliriomyza melampyga belongs to the subfamily Phytomyzinae.
Distribution:
Europe, North America.
Habitat:
Frequently in deciduous and mixed forests also on riversides; in any case in places where balsams can be found.
Description:
Yellow fly with dark marking on thorax and a body length of approx. 3 mm.
Biology:
The females of Phytoliriomyza melampyga lay their eggs on the leaves of balsam (Impatiens), the host plants of the larvae. After hatching, from June, the phytophagous larvae begin to feed mines into the leaves of their host plants. The irregular, initially narrow mines visible on the leaf surface usually end up in a larger undermined whitish area. I have found leaf mines of the Jewelweed Leafminer on touch-me-not balsam (Impatiens noli-tangere), small balsam (Impatiens parviflora) and Himalayan balsam (Impatiens glandulifera).
The larvae leave the mines to pupate.

References, further reading, links:
  1. Pape T. & Thompson F.C. (eds) (2017). Systema Dipterorum (version 2.0, Jan 2011). In: Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life, 2017 Annual Checklist (Roskov Y., Abucay L., Orrell T., Nicolson D., Bailly N., Kirk P.M., Bourgoin T., DeWalt R.E., Decock W., De Wever A., Nieukerken E. van, Zarucchi J., Penev L., eds.). Digital resource at www.catalogueoflife.org/annual-checklist/2017. Species 2000: Naturalis, Leiden, the Netherlands. ISSN 2405-884X.
  2. José Benavent-Corai, Michel Martinez, Ricardo Jiménez Peydró: Catalogue of the hosts-plants of the world Agromyzidae (Diptera), Part 1: List of Agromyzidae species and their hosts-plants, Part 2: List of hosts-plants and Agromyzidae associated, Bollettino di Zoologia agraria e di Bachicoltura, Ser. U, 37, 2005-Suppl.