Pinyon Flat, Riverside County, California
Adults and egg masses
Photo is an actual photo of live insect taken by me at the time listed 2023-10-01 16:43:29 at OAK airport arrival terminal for southwest flight (SWA3845) from Baltimore. It was found alive on a passenger inside the airplane while landing, captured, and euthanized in the airport terminal. All details (ie coordinates, time of photo) are exact. No other individuals were seen but a detailed search of fuselage was not performed by poster.
Eggs? of some presumed parasitoid on the wing cells and veins of a live Schistocerca nitens which was having some trouble flying (short, weak sallies).
Eucalyptus species host. There were two larvae as far as I could tell, so if they weren't inquilines, then this is polythalamous. Location is collection site.
Photos by Andrew Yamagiwa
Leaf roller on Vitis californica
Perhaps?
Perhaps? On Quercus chrysolepis.
Some sort of gall on Salix lasiolepis
On Frangula californica
On Euphorbia lathyris. Could be a Liriomyza, but has the epidermal, wider, white track of Marmaras I've seen before. Apologies for the poor quality, I found this looking back over old photos.
Host Q. agrifolia. Seems to fit some if not most of the bill, as described in Eiseman 1st Ed pg 1012. What appears to be a ridge (tentiform?) in the small blotch(?) at the end worries me. No doubt other features should, too!
Potentially? All current observations of this species are in the Southeast US but seems to match images. Found on Ambrosia chamissonis
Host coyotebrush
Host Hazardia squarrosa. 2nd sighting, different location (1st obs https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/116514246). Pocket gall form. Very slight puckering felt. Several examples here from one plant; abaxial/adaxial leaf shots, except for last.
This midge emerged from Yerba Santa (Eriodictyon californicum) flower bud galls collected on 5/14/2022 and left in a small plastic container inside at room temperature. See image of a dried gall, and a pupa dissected from the same cluster of galls, here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/119774261
On Populus trichocarpa. These are all over the leaves of many trees in a riparian zone. May be a second generation? Prior Thecabius observation at this location in March: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/109277443
On planted Plane tree species, probably London.
On Fremont cottonwood
On Urtica dioica. Stem swelling.
In galls (see photos) formed on Manzanita at Botanic Garden. Galls discovered by Christina Varnava. Images by Zach Phillips.
Host black cottonwood. Collecting for rearing begins soon.
Host: Coast Silk Tassel. Recently dead shrub with scores of asymmetrical bud or stem galls. See image 2 for diagnostic flower structures of this host. Identifiers: because this gall forming organism is not yet described by science, please consider scrolling to the bottom of the identity page to check the box 'It's as good as it can be' to bounce this and similar observations up to research grade, which will allow more specialists to see it - thanks. See Russo 2021, pg. 317 for a head start on ID.
Host toyon berries. Russo 2021 323: "Galls appear to have a white fungus lining, which may or may not be eaten by the larvae."
Maybe? Not thick like a gall. Lots all over the trail
Magnified images of this observation: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/105482279
Possibly galls or fungi found on Sticky Cinquefoil (Drymocallis glandulosa). Collected by @meandering_isabel and @leafdoodler.
On sticky cinquefoil. Several plants had them. They appeared mostly on the upper surface of the leaf, and yellowed the area
On purple sage!
Rays 13-14.5 cm across. Spore case about5.5 cm across.
Don't know what this is.
On Clematis, along the side of Rte. 26 (a bit east of mile 69).
On Black Sage.
On Engelmann oak in Santa Barbara botanic garden. Unlike a blister gall, there is a well defined, somewhat lumpy, mostly flat abaxial organism associated with each adaxial pimple. But unlike the plate gall that white oaks host, these don't seem detachable, plus with Andricus pattersonae there's no adaxial deformation (as there is here in this observation), just downstream damage. And this is well out of range. Last photo is probably of something completely different using the same space, but who knows?!
Left to right: Salix lasiolepis, Salix laevigata, Salix lasiandra var. lasiandra, Salix exigua var. hindsiana
Mining in Delairea odorata leaf. I know the moth Digitivalva delaireae has recently been released in my area as a leaf-mining biocontrol on this invasive species. I have no actual familiarity with the species but I'm assuming that's what this is?
On Black cottonwood. Just a guess. Russo 2021 58-59 very similar spotting shown in Plate 31, but may not be associated with taphrina fungus. Helpful discussion at https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/53879815
@nancyasquith -- Neolasioptera convolvuli is my first shot, and only because the host is sort of related to Calystegia, which was on the gall host list. They are on Common Morning glory, Ipomoea purpurea. Only the first two photos resemble N. convolvuli galls, however. They all may or may not even be galls. I've looked at galls, rusts, and nematodes without finding much of a match. The last photo has some black spots, but even enlarged they aren't identifiable as anything. The plant was growing over from my neighbor's yard, and I found these 'galls' on several of the runners.
Leaf roll galls on Purpleflower Honeysuckle. Aphids?
Host: Artemisia tridentata. Unlike anything represented for this host in Russo (Plant Galls of the Western US, 2021.) Very likely a midge however given the astonishing diversity of midge galls known to occur on this host plant.
On Geranium, very small < 5 mm might be small stingless bees.
Display of 50,000 SLF wings at Penn State Lehigh Valley.
More info here - https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/conboy/29456-50-000-spotted-lanternfly-wings
Sacoglossan Sea Slug. Maximum length 6 mm. Rhinophores cylindrical, enrolled,
black with posterior white stripes from base to half-way up,
leaving apices completely black. Oral tentacles
completely black; foot corners yellow. Head black with two
yellow-orange patches, eyespots at base of yellow-orange
patches. Lateral yellow-orange line on head connects
yellow-orange eye patches to dorsum. Body elongate,
with numerous cylindrical cerata covering most of the
dorsum. Proximal half of cerata yellow-orange, distal half
black. Foot yellow-orange ventrally from head to tail.
Posterior end of foot is pointed, black dorsally.
Radula of a 4 mm long specimen from Catalina Island,
California (CPIC 01962) composed of 7 teeth in ascending
row, 12 teeth in descending row, and 2–4 teeth in ascus. Leading tooth smooth, lacking denticles, with a cylindrical,
short, slightly curved, pointed cusp. Base of teeth
short, triangular, slightly concave ventrally.
Rescued from here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/83091842
4 males, 2 females
tentatively diagnosed as dehydrated and hypoglycemic
Brought to local rehabber for care
I followed the butterfly as it flew near shrubs at a park. The flight speed was slow and rhythmic. My companion captured the photo as it landed on a small branch.
Stella Orangetip. Photographed at Line Creek, East Kootenay, British Columbia on 3 July 2013.
2 living plants off trail near stream, several dead plant.