Tag Archives: hackberry galls
Homeless insects and energy audits
When cold weather comes knocking, it should be no surprise that hundreds, or even thousands, of insects may be waiting for you to open the door this fall. It’s not like you can really blame them. They are just temporarily homeless critters looking for a warm place to spend the winter. I was staying at a hotel this week in Austin for the Entomological Society of America’s annual meeting, and on my 23rd floor window I looked out and saw dozens of hackberry nipple-gall maker insects on the… Read More →
Little insect with a big name invades homes
If you’ve ever noticed nipple-like swellings on hackberry leaves, you already know a little about the hackberry nipplegall maker, Pachypsylla celtidismamma. Pachypsylla is a genus of tiny insects that grow up inside galls that form on hackberry leaves. Like other gall makers, Pachypsylla adults lay their eggs on leaves, which then start to swell around the egg or developing larva, forming a gall. After feeding on the gall tissue all summer, Pachypsylla adults emerge in the fall. Unfortunately for fastidious homemakers, these adults commonly enter structures at this time in their… Read More →