Spring Gall Hunting in the English Midlands Day 3

Chaange of plan. I've decided to do subsequent days as separate posts: markup doesn't work as well in comments & ir makes it easier for other commenters. So this is day 3 of the 2023 Spring Gall Week.

I started the day with one objective: find the elusive Marble Gall. I remember seeing this and several other Oak galls in the opposite direction to my usual walks. I therefore earmarked it for the afternoon.

The morning proved serendipitous. Firstly, I stopped by some planted sapling birches, to check the new catkins. These are low enough to allow observation at eye level, unlike the ones at the end of the road which have been pruned. I've been checking out the development of the female catkins for a couple of weeks now. As they mature they turn upright, and the flowers open from the proximal (lower end). It's just possible to see two stigmas protroding very slightly. Once all flowers are open I expect to find female Semudobia ovipositing into the catkin, and that's exactly what I found today. I even made a little video, but cant share it on iNaturalist. These images aren't perfect as it was a bit breezy.

Here's a similar photo I took 11 years ago:

My second bit of serendipity was that I forgot to make bread this morning, so had to get some shop bread for lunch. I diverted en route to the shop to a large Bay Laurel covered with old galls of Lauritrioza alacris.

I followed my plan in the afternoon. Still a lot of trees with buds firmly closed. I found the three oaks on the lawns of tge main University campus, but drew a blank on the first. The second had a patch of twig covered by Lachnus aphids, and some Ramshorn galls. The third had a solitary Marble Gall. Success!

I carried on to look at a few Turkey Oaks, most were still in bud, another has hsd the gall-bearing branvhes pruned away, but was coming into leaf. Even the Lucombe Oak hybrid had lost all its leaves, so no chance of old galls there.

On the way back I looked at some Black Poplars by the ring road. A few old Spiral galls were visible, but no sign of leaves.

I finally broke the Marble Gall bogey, and added two more which I didn't expect.

I likely won't find anything on Day 4, as I have to stay at the house in the afternoon, but I plan a visit to the last of our local churchyards looking for the Artichoke gall on Yew. I'm hopeful about finding a few more mite galls by the end of the week, so 30 galls still looks in reach.

Posted on April 18, 2023 08:52 AM by sk53