Mayetiola thujae | |
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Scientific classification
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Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Diptera |
Family: | Cecidomyiidae |
Genus: | Mayetiola |
Species: | M. thujae
|
Binomial name | |
Mayetiola thujae Hedlin, 1959 (Originally Phytophaga thujae)
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Synonyms | |
Phytophaga thujae |
Mayetiola thujae, the redcedar cone midge, is a species of gall midge that infects western redcedar ( Thuja plicata) cones.
Males are 2.44 millimetres (0.096 in) long on average. Females are somewhat larger, averaging 2.77 millimetres (0.109 in) in length, and have retractible ovipositors. [1] The adults of both sexes are dark gray. [2]
Eggs are laid on the inner surface of female western redcedar cones in the March or April, [3] shortly after pollination occurs. [4] The eggs are oblong and translucent, but appear to be orange due to the color of the larvae. [4] The eggs hatch in April or May after a month of incubation. [3] The larvae, which grow up to 4 millimetres (0.16 in) long, [2] feed on the seeds and tissue of the cone before beginning to pupate in late summer. [4]
As a control measure, insecticides can be applied to western redcedar cones in the spring. [2] The larvae are often infected by parasitoid wasps of the family Chalcididae. [4]
Mayetiola thujae | |
---|---|
Scientific classification
![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Diptera |
Family: | Cecidomyiidae |
Genus: | Mayetiola |
Species: | M. thujae
|
Binomial name | |
Mayetiola thujae Hedlin, 1959 (Originally Phytophaga thujae)
| |
Synonyms | |
Phytophaga thujae |
Mayetiola thujae, the redcedar cone midge, is a species of gall midge that infects western redcedar ( Thuja plicata) cones.
Males are 2.44 millimetres (0.096 in) long on average. Females are somewhat larger, averaging 2.77 millimetres (0.109 in) in length, and have retractible ovipositors. [1] The adults of both sexes are dark gray. [2]
Eggs are laid on the inner surface of female western redcedar cones in the March or April, [3] shortly after pollination occurs. [4] The eggs are oblong and translucent, but appear to be orange due to the color of the larvae. [4] The eggs hatch in April or May after a month of incubation. [3] The larvae, which grow up to 4 millimetres (0.16 in) long, [2] feed on the seeds and tissue of the cone before beginning to pupate in late summer. [4]
As a control measure, insecticides can be applied to western redcedar cones in the spring. [2] The larvae are often infected by parasitoid wasps of the family Chalcididae. [4]