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Dasineura pyri Bouché
Insecta, Diptera, Cecidomyiidae .

Pear leaf-curling midge, Pear leaf midge

Description, Biology, Life Cycle, Damage, Common Names, Images

[R]Description
- Adult: 2 to 3 mm. Black. In the female, the ovipositor is able to extend considerably (up to body length) (*) .
- Eggs: reddish.
- Larva: 2 mm. Tapered at each end, pronounced tranverse segmentation, well-developed sternal spatula. Yellowish-white.

[R]Biology
- Host plant: pear.
- Adult: very short life. Fecundity: 30 eggs.
- Eggs: time until hatching, 3 to 4 days.
- Larva: time until pupation: 10 to 12 days.

[R]Life Cycle
- 3 to 6 generations per year.
- The adults appear in the spring, mate and lay eggs the same day. The female deposits the eggs on the underside of the still-furled leaf edges.
- The larva discharges saliva containing an auxin-related toxic substance over the leaves enabling it to feed on the cell contents. Some of the larvae pupate within the curled-up leaf, others fall to the ground, bury themselves and undergo diapause in a cocoon.
- Pupation begins in March.

[R]Damage
The young leaves of attacked shoots remain curled up longitudinally. The leaf blade thickens considerably, becoming rigid and brittle (*) . The 2nd and 3rd generations cause the greatest damage since they occur when shoot vigour and the formation of young leaves is most prolific.

[R]Common Names
DE: Birnenblatt-Gallmücke ES: Cecidómido de las hojas del peral FR: Cécidomyie des feuilles du poirier IT: Cecidomia delle foglie del pero PT: Mosquinha (cecidomídeo) do enrolamento das folhas da pereira GB: Pear leaf-curling midge

[R] Images

  1. Dasineura pyri (Bouché) (ACTA (fiche))
    Adult Drawn from a microscope setting.
  2. Dasineura pyri (Bouché) (Coutin R. / OPIE)
    Damage The terminal leaves are severely distorted (arrowed).
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