There's a great spot for Cow Parsley just a mile or so away from here, it grows all around the edges of the car park at the community hall. Gilbert's Ghost has already recorded a flymine on Cow Parsley this year and I was keen to follow suit, hence a quick visit was in order. It didn't take me long to find what I was after, or at least what I thought I was after
The species that typically mines Cow Parsley is Phytomyza chaerophylli, one which I've recorded from this very patch of Cow Parsley in the past. However, I don't think that this is it.
Flash back to the summer of 2018 and I was busily sending in my agromyzid leafmine images to Barry Warrington, he's the chap that runs the national recording scheme for this family of flies. Happily, I identified most of them correctly but he did pull me up on a few including one on Cow Parsley. Here's the 2018 pic in question
I'd merrily submitted this as Phytomyza chaerophylli in Cow Parsley. Barry had other ideas though:
The first two are ok for chaerophylli but I think the image showing the larva is actually Euleia heraclei. The whole leaf is mined out, with frass in clumps and the larva looks on the large side.
Oh right, so not all mines in Cow Parsley are chaerophylli? I hadn't reaslied that. Eulia heraclei isn't even an agromyzid, it's a tephritid fly. That was a bit of a curveball for me! But one that I've remembered to bear in mind when checking Cow Parsley mines.
Looking at the leaf from today, I'm not convinced I don't have another Eulia heraclei mine. It's vacant, which is to say that there's no larva inside, so no further clues there. I think I shall step away from it and wait for the spring generation to appear, rather than string an old mine. Ideally I'd like to keep my 2020 Vision as free from errors as possible.
Remember that WeBS bird count I mentioned yesterday, the one I'd put off until today? Well the forecast was wrong regards the rain turning to sleet... it was actually driving hail. Thankfully I was in my car at the time.
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