This is a place to collect observations of goldenrod leaf ties, folds, and rolls. These are often misidentified as galls. They are probably mostly the work of caterpillars, but other organisms may also form these structures, perhaps sawfly larvae and jumping spiders. Because these span diverse taxa, I wanted to create a place to collect these observations that would otherwise be marked ...more ↓
This is a place to collect observations of goldenrod leaf ties, folds, and rolls. These are often misidentified as galls. They are probably mostly the work of caterpillars, but other organisms may also form these structures, perhaps sawfly larvae and jumping spiders. Because these span diverse taxa, I wanted to create a place to collect these observations that would otherwise be marked "Lepidoptera" or "Arthropoda".
I am not sufficiently informed to confidently assign these structures to a particular arthropod, but someone else probably is. If you know anybody with expertise on these things, please feel free to direct them to this page.
Cheers -
Daniel McClosky (@ddennism)
Moths in the genus Dichomeris are responsible for many leaf folds on goldenrods (Loeffler, 1994).
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