Fire Gall Wasp
Fast Facts
Latin name: Diplolepis mayri
Notable feature: The galls created by this gall wasp look as though they are on fire and can be found on wild rose leaves.
Conservation Status: Not Evaluated
Where in the UK: Scattered records in UK – rare species to see.
The Fire Gall Wasp (Diplolepis mayri) creates a striking gall on wild roses. In the UK, we have hundreds of different types of gall with each plant and tree species having its own ‘art’ forms according to the invertebrate which caused it. For the most part, galls are much easier to observe and identify than the invertebrates that cause them.
A gall is an abnormal plant growth caused by various parasites such as fungi, bacteria, insects or mites. The plant cells swell and change in size in order to contain the parasite inside. Galls offer a safe environment for the parasite, providing them with shelter and food inside the gall.
Many galls are caused by insects called gall wasps. Gall wasps are in the order Hymenoptera (bees, wasps and ants) and Cynipidae family. They are either parasites of plants or parasites of their fellow parasitic wasps (called hyper-parasatoids). The host plant species, size, shape and colour of the plant gall can help identify parasite is inside – like the Fire Wasp’s fiery-like gall on wild roses.
- Size: Wasps <8mm
- Life span: Unknown, likely annual.
- Diet: As larvae, gall wasps feed on their host plant’s tissue. As adults, they likely sustain themselves with nectar like other wasp species.
- Reproduction: The reproduction of gall wasps is fascinating and there is still a lot to learn. Often species will have alternating generations, where one reproduces by parthenogenesis (females can produce an embryo from an unfertilised egg) and the other is a two-sex generation (has both male and females, reproducing sexually). A female gall wasp will use her ovipositor (egg-laying tube) to lay an egg in her host plant. In the case of the Fire Gall Wasp, this is a wild rose bush. At some point after the egg is laid and before the wasp larvae hatch, a plant gall will begin to develop. Scientists still do not know exactly what triggers the growth of the plant gall. Once hatched, the wasp larvae feeds on its host plant within the safe environment provided by the gall, eventually making their way out of the gall to reproduce themselves.
- When to see: It’s unlikely that you’ll be able to spot a Fire Gall Wasp due to their size. However, their galls will be most visible in Summer and Autumn.
- Population Trend: Unknown.
- Threats: Unknown.
- Interesting Fact: There are more than 900 plant gall forming animals in the UK!
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