Nomenclature

Liriomyza caulophaga (Kleinschmidt 1960)

Haplomyza caulophaga Kleinschmidt 1960
Liriomyza haplomyzina Spencer 1961

Hosts

Beta vulgaris var. cicla
Portulaca oleracea

Distribution

Asia: Indonesia
Oceania: Australia (New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia), Vanuatu

Key characters

Wing length 1.7-2.1 mm. Frons, antennae, femora and scutellum bright yellow. Mesonotum blackish-grey. Orbits strongly projecting above eye. Orbital setulae lacking. Third antennal segment with distinct point at upper corner. Second (outer) cross-vein (dm-cu) lacking. Male genitalia with paired, rod-like structure (processus longus or Langfortsatz). Ejaculatory apodeme small.  Posterior spiracles of larva and puparium have 3 enlarged spiracular bulbs (Spencer 1963a, 1977; Dempewolf 2004).

Notes

Larvae feed and pupate internally in the midrib and petiole (Kleinschmidt 1960, 1965, 1970; Spencer  1977). The species is easily distinguished from L. chenopodii which can also be found on Beta (Dempewolf 2004). Crutwell McFadyen (1994) extended the host range when she recorded L. caulophaga attacking Portulaca oleracea in Queensland. Liriomyza caulophaga is an aberrant species with strange and distinct genitalia (Dempewolf 2004, Spencer 1973). The male genitalia have the processus longus (or Langfortsatz) which is found in the Cerodontha genus but in no other Liriomyza spp. Further investigations on this species are needed to clarify its classification in the Agromyzidae (Spencer 1977).

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References

Crutwell McFadyen RE (1994). Two new insects from Portulaca oleracea L. in Australia. Australian Journal of Entomology 33: 43-44.

Dempewolf M (2004). Arthropods of Economic Importance - Agromyzidae of the World (CD-ROM). ETI. University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam. https://agromyzidae.linnaeus.naturalis.nl/linnaeus_ng/app/views/species/nsr_taxon.php?id=57038&epi=55

Kleinschmidt RP (1960). New species of Agromyzidae from Queensland. Queensland Journal of Agricultural Sciences 17: 321-337.

Kleinschmidt RP (1965). Some leaf-mining Agromyzidae (Diptera) from Queensland. Australian Journal of Entomology 4: 1-2.

Kleinschmidt RP (1970). Studies of some species of Agromyzidae in Queensland. Queensland Journal of Agricultural and Animal Sciences 27: 321-384.

Spencer KA (1961). A synopsis of the Oriental Agromyzidae (Diptera). Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London. 113: 55-100.

Spencer KA (1963). The Australian Agromyzidae (Diptera: Insecta). Records of the Australian Museum 25: 305-354.

Spencer KA (1973). Agromyzidae (Diptera) of economic importance. Series Entomologica 9. Dr W Junk, The Hague. 418 pp.

Spencer KA (1977). A revision of the Australian Agromyzidae (Diptera). Special Publication. Western Australian Museum 8: 1-255.

WWW Resources

Liriomyza caulophaga in Dempewolf M (2004). Arthropods of Economic Importance - Agromyzidae of the World

Liriomyza caulophaga in Australian Faunal Directory (Agromyzidae compiled by MG Elliott, Australian Museum, Sydney. Updated: 23 Sep 2014)