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Title: Phytomyza omlandi spec. nov. – the first species of Agromyzidae (Diptera: Schizophora) reared from the family Gelsemiaceae (Asteridae)

Author
item Scheffer, Sonja
item LONSDALE, O. - California Department Of Food And Agriculture

Submitted to: Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/7/2010
Publication Date: 1/28/2011
Citation: Scheffer, S.J., Lonsdale, O. 2011. Phytomyza omlandi spec. nov. – the first species of Agromyzidae (Diptera: Schizophora) reared from the family Gelsemiaceae (Asteridae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington. 113(1):42-49.

Interpretive Summary: Plant-feeding insects result in billions of dollars of economic losses to farmers around the world. Flies that feed within leaves as leafminers can cause substantial damage to vegetable and flower crops as well as to ornamental plants. In this study, we describe a new species of leafmining fly that feeds on the leaves of Gelsemium sempervirens, an ornamental plant known as “evening trumpet-flower” or “Carolina, yellow, or false jessamine” that is native to the southeastern United States. We provide descriptions and figures depicting the new leafminer species and discuss how it is related to other leafmining flies. This information will be of interest to scientists, extension entomologists, and horticulturalists.

Technical Abstract: A new species of leafmining fly in the genus Phytomyza Fallén (Diptera: Agromyzidae) is described from Gelsemium Juss, representing the first known instance of an agromyzid feeding on Gelsemiaceae (Asteridae). The host plant, G. sempervirens (L.) (the “evening trumpetflower”), and possibly also G. rankinii Small, is a perennial vining species native to the southeastern United States. Males and females of the leafminer were reared from leaves collected in North Carolina from January to April in 1996 and 1997. The morphology and life history of P. omlandi new species are discussed, and photographs and illustrations are provided for external structures, the male genitalia and the leafmine. Morphological and molecular data are also used to determine the phylogenetic placement of this species with respect to the related holly leafmining P. ilicis complex.