Probably. These mines are quite old and the appearance of the frass isn't all that clear, but the likelihood is that they're all aurella if the leaves are bramble. I know it isn't always easy to time things correctly, especially as there may only be a week or two between the egg hatching and pupation for a lot of these miners, but fresh mines with a larva still present are much more helpful when it comes to trying to assign an ID!
Actually, for aurella, later might be better! It seems to breed continuously all year round and I have most success finding active mines in December and January when there are no other confusion species around.
Hi Mark,
ReplyDeleteProbably. These mines are quite old and the appearance of the frass isn't all that clear, but the likelihood is that they're all aurella if the leaves are bramble. I know it isn't always easy to time things correctly, especially as there may only be a week or two between the egg hatching and pupation for a lot of these miners, but fresh mines with a larva still present are much more helpful when it comes to trying to assign an ID!
2d attempt, I keep getting errors from google when I post reples..thanks Dave, I'll start earlier next year.
ReplyDeleteActually, for aurella, later might be better! It seems to breed continuously all year round and I have most success finding active mines in December and January when there are no other confusion species around.
ReplyDelete