Essex Gall Records for 1999
JERRY BOWDREY
Fairview, Colchester Road, Thorpe-le-Soken CO16 0LB
This year has again produced some interesting records for the county.
Early summer produced several records of pocket plum galls on the fruits of Blackthorn Prunus
spinosa. The developing fruits or sloes become grossly mis-shapen and discoloured, and contain no
seed. The gall-induccr is the fungus Taphrina pruni Tul. These galls appear to have become more
common in recent years, and the following records were received in 1999:
Thorpe-le-Soken (TM1723) 30.V.99 JPB
Goldhanger sea wall (TL80) 31.V.99 J. &L. Firmin
Lawford Lane. Writtle (TL6806) 8.vi.99 C. Romer per A. Boniface
Hoppits Mead, Braintree (TL7522) ll.vi.99 JPB
In Colchester (TL9925), numerous galled fruits of Cherry-plum P. cerasifera were found in Ryegate
Road 8.vi.99 by J. Heath.
At Silver End (TL8020), the distinctive fig galls of the aphid Tetraneura ulmi were abundant on a
hedgerow elm on 16.vi.99 (JPB). Peter Furze rediscovered galls of the gall midge Rhopalomyia
ptarmicae near Basildon (see note in this issue), and a gall of Lasioptera rubi was found at Newland
Grove (TL7110) on 11 .vii.99 by M.J. Heywood.
Galls of the plume moth Adaina microdactyla were found in stems of Hemp-agrimony Eupatorium
cannabinum at Hoppits Mead, and those of the Cynipid Phanacis caulicola in stems of Prickly Ox-
tongue Picris echioides at Far Green, Thorpe-le-Soken (TM1622) (both JPB). A record of Phanacis
hypochaeridis from a meadow by the River Wid (TL6904) on 31.V.99 by M.J. Heywood represents
a new 10km square.
My thanks to all those who have contributed records and specimens.
Essex Naturalist (New Series) 17 (2000)