Tetramesa maderae (Walker, 1849)

on Triticum

gall

The wasps of the first generation are apterous; they oviposit on the very youngest wheat seedlings; the larvae bore in the stem and destroy the vegetation point. They pupate end of May, and a winged second wasp generation appears soon thereafter. The larvae live in the culms just above the nodes. In autumn they pupate in their cells and hibernate there. The species is almost fully parthenogenetic.

hostplants

Poaceae, monophagous

Triticum aestivum.

notes

Up to the beginning of the 20th century the first generation larvae formed an important crop pest in southern Europe.

references

Popescu (2004a).