WHITE OAK GALL WASP

WHITE OAK GALL WASP

Andricus ignotus
GALL WASPS (Cynipidae)

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This wasp is about 1/8 inch long. The body is entirely black and shiny. The wings are clear and long. The antennae are brown. The legs are brown. The larva is white and is about 1/8 inch long (photo B).

The frequency of occurrence is not known, but it is expected that the species is common where the host trees are found. The White Oak Gall Wasp was photographed at Fontenelle Forest on January 12, 2013 on Swamp White Oak (Quercus bicolor) planted outside the Nature Center. The gall has also been found on Bur Oaks in Fontenelle Forest. The adults usually emerge in March and April. Since these wasps are very small, they would not ordinarily be encountered unless one should happen to see one emerging from the gall. The galls are always on the underside of Bur Oak leaves attached along the vein.

This species forms galls on the underside of leaves of white oaks and burr oaks. The galls are about 1/8 inch long and are composed of seedlike cells, covered by wool. The galls usually drop off when the leaves drop in the fall. The wool weathers away during the winter. The adults oviposit in the leaf buds.

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