Tephritis formosa is a species of tephritid fly.BioLib It is one of many species known commonly as gall fly.
Distribution This species is found in most countries across Europe (Albania, Andorra, Austria, Balearic Islands, Belgium, United Kingdom, Ireland, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Republic of Moldova, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Ukraine) and it also occurs in the Near East (Turkey, Caucasus, Israel and Iran).Fauna europaeaBisby F.A., Roskov Y.R., Orrell T.M., Nicolson D., Paglinawan L.E., Bailly N., Kirk P.M., Bourgoin T., Baillargeon G., Ouvrard D. Catalogue of life
Habitat These flies inhabit a wide range of habitats, but mainly prefer meadows, grassland and urban gardens where the host plants grow.
Description
The adult male of Tephritis formosa is 4 to 5 mm long with wings about 4 mm long. The females are about 5 to 6 mm in length with wings of about 4 to 5 mm. The thorax and the abdomen are brownish. The head shows yellow-reddish eyes. The abdomen of the females ends in a tapered ovipositor, while it is rather rounded in males. The legs are yellowish. These small flies have light beige wings with large dark brown markings and small hyaline areas. The apical fork is missing. There are only some brown spots at end of veins R4+5 and M.Murat KÜTÜK The Fauna and Systematics of the Genus Tephritis Latreille, 1804 (Diptera: Tephritidae) with a Key to the Species of Tephritis in Turkey Ebrahim Zarghani, Samad Khaghaninia, Reza Farshbaf Pour Abad and Babak Gharali SYNOPSIS OF THE GENUS TEPHRITIS LATREILLE (DIPTERA: TEPHRITIDAE) IN IRANNature Spot
Biology The host plants for the larvae are hawksbeards (Crepis virens), cat's ear (Hypochaeris radicata) and sow-thistle (Sonchus olearius, Sonchus aspera, Sonchus arvensis).George C. Steyskal [Keys to The Insects of The European Part of The USSR]
Larvae invade the flower heads, causing galls to form.
References
External links INPN Bugs and Weeds