Rhopalomyia, Dorchin, Netta, Mcevoy, Miles V., Dowling, Todd A., Abrahamson, Warren G. & Moore, Joseph G., 2009

Dorchin, Netta, Mcevoy, Miles V., Dowling, Todd A., Abrahamson, Warren G. & Moore, Joseph G., 2009, Revision of the goldenrod-galling Rhopalomyia species (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) in North America, Zootaxa 2152, pp. 1-35 : 33

Rhopalomyia n.sp.

Adult: unstudied.

Pupa: unstudied.

Material examined: 3 males, 5 females, 2 pupae, USA, Gainesville, FL, 5/V/1982, E. Fontes.

Host: Solidago fistulosa

Gall and biology: The galls of this species were found by E. Fontes in May and June of 1982 around Gainesville, Florida ( Fontes et al. 1994). They developed on young stems, and seemed to have stunted the growth of the apical meristem, because galled ramets were usually only 30 cm tall and atypically branched under the galls. The galls are oval with a tapered tip, single-chambered, grayish, and are typically aggregated around a stem to form a “star-like” structure. Galls found in August were already dry except for one or two records.

Remarks: The available material was insufficient for description of this species in the present work or for determining its relations to other Rhopalomyia species on goldenrods. The description of the galls provided to us by E. Fontes (pers. com.) is reminiscent of R. racemicola galls, but the galls of R. racemicola develop in inflorescences in late summer whereas those of the new species develop on stems in spring and early summer. We currently consider this species as undescribed based on its galls, and intend to describe it once additional material is obtained.