Cedar Creek
Natural History Area
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Insects of Cedar Creek
Order DIPTERA
Family CECIDOMYIIDAE
(Gall Midges)
The Gall Midges (1059 NA spp) is a
large family of small, slender, fragile flies most of which attack a variety
of plants and form characteristic galls. The state of New York (Felt in
Leonard, 1923) reports 765 spp, and it is likely that a specialist could
find at least 500 species in every state in the Union. Specimens
are commonly taken in old field sweeps. Some have been saved, but no attempt
has been made to identify them.
The Gall Midges of Cedar Creek await some enthusiastic collector. I
can mention but a few here. Rhabdophaga spp form characteristic
cone galls on species of Salix and Rosa. Asteromyia
spp form blotch galls on a variety of Asteraceae, and xx forms 'broom
galls' on the tops of
Solidago gigantea.