I collected this gall from a Coast Live Oak in October of 2021. I kept it in a container with the end of the branch in a little bit of water that I changed weekly. On January 21 2022 when I opened it to change the water, I found a hole in the gall and the wasp shown.
Observed on valley oak (Q. lobata)
Host: CA Scrub Oak. An undescribed species?
Dozens of identical-looking adult gall wasps crawling on Dryocosmus dubiosus galls, some with exit holes. Galls present on this same Coast Live Oak include (tentative IDS): Aceria mackiei, Dasineura silvestrii, and lots of Dryocosmus dubiosus.
This observation is for the adult wasps; could be newly-emerging Dryocosmus dubiosus, or they could be another species, perhaps parasitic.
NO1 #27/30
Collected on 2/18/2023 by Noriko Ito
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/149423290
Emerged on 3/20/2023
NO1 #1
Collected on 2/18/2023 by Noriko Ito
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/149423290
Emerged on 2/23/2023
ON2
Female collected at a blacklight sheet by @jcochran706 on 3/1/2023
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/149998977
I provided buds of Q fusiformis, macrocarpa, laceyi, sinuata, muehlenbergii, and stellata, and she went right for the Q fusiformis buds and oviposited in at least two of them.
Mystery gall from Coast Live Oak. See in situ observation here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/148539706
Sorry - I was using the inches side of the ruler. I wasn't thinking.
On coast live oak. I think these are galls - but I suppose they could be new growth. [edit: they are in fact galls]. However, they don't look like buds I'm familiar with, and I only found these on one tree [edit: after multiple re-visits, I found these on two trees]. This tree had a couple old Amphibolips quercuspomiformis, but the spring form of that gall is entirely different than this.
See https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/148539708 for what may be old forms of this gall, found nearby on the same tree.
See https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/148848266 for dissected gall
Separate observation for the winter ants:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/148539707
maybe - looks like this - http://joycegross.com/images.php?search=2&taxon=Dryocosmus+dubiosus&ordr=
These look like they want to be C. douglasii but seem too thin walled at top and too stalky at the bottom. Similar looking observations: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/136453193 and https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/142877075
On Valley Oak (Quercus lobata)
Host: Coast Live Oak. Bisexual spring generation blister galls with exit holes apparent.
Host: Canyon Live Oak. Final images show gall after light rubbing; hairs were easily removed.
Sexual generation on canyon live oak
Stem galls found on trees that also had the n-densiflorus-tanoak-fuzzy-gall on leaves. Pulling both apart revealed identical gall structures and identical larvae. The larval chambers seemed typical for a lot of midge galls, being small "pockets" in the gall tissue which aren't actually sealed shut, and can be easily opened along the seam.
Possible galling along leaf veins in distinctive pattern.
A third leafy gall found on Grindelia sp.! I split this one carefully open with my fingernail to find a perfect little chamber in the center of the leafy gall filled with ~10 small translucent larva! When I was done photographing, I smushed the two halves back together because the sap is so sticky and left the gall on the plant.
On Quercus macrocarpa
Oak hypersensitive response; unclear what initiated it but possibly a cynipid successfully deterred by the plant's immune system
Kind of a Medusa thing going on with these acorns. On a white oak hybrid, possibly Q. lobata x garryana. (Last photo has leaves.)
Canyon Live Oak; per Nancy Asquith, it is Joyce Gross's Gall#5/fluted-gall-in-Russo-2021/GF-code "q-chrysolepis-fluted-gall"
Canyon Live Oak; Russo p. 158 Clustered Blister Gall Wasp unknown # 24
Unknown q-dumosa-pip-gall
Found by @chilipossum on Scrub Oak, very interesting! The side view photos do look more acorn-y 😆
Russo's "Flange Gall" (2021, p128). On Q. douglasii. Most of these seem early stage to me, without the points at the base. This is the earliest I've seen any of the galls; previous observations were in Aug, Sep, and Oct. There is an insect next to the oldest gall. I can't tell what it is (no great photos), but I put together the "best" shots in the third photo.
These are more recent photos of this observation: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/77834290. Several leaves, plus a better view of the habit. The photo of the trunk was taken on 28 Apr 2022, but I thought it might be helpful. I have no photos of any parts of the acorn.
@merav @nancyasquith @garth_harwood @megachile Do you guys know of a cone gall on Chamise? @chyroptera and I found about half a dozen of these in various stages, with a clear chamber when split open.
A genus of midges that induce galls on Brodiaea elegans elegans. Added pictures of larvae, pupae, pupal cases, and adults after hatching.
This was found by Graysquirrel in observation https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/113060810 and I kept tabs on it until it opened.
I was surprised to notice what appeared to be several fresh galls of varying growth patterns on my backyard Frangula californica.
Part of my surprise is the timing. It is early for flowering and especially fruiting. When I looked at the bush today I only found one flower bud on a bush that is approximately 2 meters x 2 meters. Yet there were 7 apparent galls of varying forms. I am moderately-to-highly confident that these galls did not exist in November.
This gall looks a bit like a possible fruit gall previously reported here:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/95882473
But it is lacking the pointy appendage (which was visible on some other galls today).
It looks like there was a single puparium (or is it two?) inside.
This is distinct from the spring flower gall that has multiple larvae inside, as seen here:
Host: CA Scrub Oak. Bisexual generation of A. pattersonae? See Russo 2021, page 113.
I was thrilled when @graysquirrel found these as we were poking around the woods together! Such a beautiful species!
Not sure whether CA scrub oak or leather oak is host.