Terellia serratulae
Terellia serratulae is a species of tephritid or fruit flies in the family Tephritidae.[2]
| Terellia serratulae | |
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| Terellia serratulae. Male on a Cirsium flowerhead | |
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| Terellia serratulae. Female with ovopositor | |
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| Species: | T. serratulae |
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| Terellia serratulae | |
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Description
Terellia serratulae can reach a length of about 4–6 millimetres (0.16–0.24 in). This bluish clear-winged fruit fly has an hairy abdomen with a chequered black pattern. The apex of the antennae is reddish or yellow-orange. In the females the length of the ovopositor corresponds approximately to the length of the last three abdominal segments (tergites).[3][4]
The females deposit eggs into the opened thistle flowerheads. The young larvae start feeding on the achenes of thistles (mainly Cirsium and Carduus species), but they do not induce gall-forming. They develop in the flower-heads (capitulum) of thistles in a cocoon of silk and plant hairs (pappus). This univoltine species overwinters in the larval stage. Adults are on the wing from July to September.[5]
Distribution and habitat
This species can be found around thistles in most of Europe, in the eastern Palearctic ecozone, in the Near East and in North Africa.[6]