The Old World tephritid Urophora quadrifasciata, a gall-inducing seed- head fly, was released in western and eastern North America for the biological control of knapweeds, Centaurea spp. (Asteraceae). Its establishment in the West (BC, CA, ID, MT, OR, WA) and in the East (CT, MA, MD, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VA, VT, WV) has been previously reported. Collections from eastern Minnesota and western Michigan in 1995 are the first for the Northcentral region of North America

Wheeler, A. G, Jr.

English

Valparaiso University

The Great Lakes Entomologist Volume 28 Numbers 3 & 4 -- Fall/Winter 1995 Numbers 3 & 4 -- Fall/Winter 1995 Article 10 January 1995 Urophora Quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae), An Introduced Seedhead Fly New to Midwestern North America A. G. Wheeler Jr. Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle  Part of the Entomology Commons Recommended Citation Wheeler, A. G. Jr. 1995. "Urophora Quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae), An Introduced Seedhead Fly New to Midwestern North America," The Great Lakes Entomologist, vol 28 (3) Available at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle/vol28/iss3/10 This Peer-Review Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Biology at ValpoScholar. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Great Lakes Entomologist by an authorized administrator of ValpoScholar. For more information, please contact a ValpoScholar staff member at scholar@valpo.edu. 1995 235THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST UROPHORA QUADRIFASCIATA (DIPTERA: TEPHRITIDAEL AN INTRO­DUCED SEEDHEAD FLY NEW TO MIDWESTERN NORTH AMERICA A. G. Wheeler, Jr. 1 ABSTRACT The Old World tephritid Urophora quadrifasciata, a gall-inducing seed­head fly, was released in western and eastern North America for the biol gical control of knapweeds, Centaurea spp. (Asteraceae). Its establishment in the West (BC, CA, ID, MT, OR, WA) and in the East (CT, MA, MD, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VA, VT, WV) has been previously reported. Collections from eastern Minnesota and western Michigan in 1995 are the first for the Northcentral re­gion of North America. The tephritid genus Umphora (about 100 spp.) includes eight species in­digenous to the Nearctic Region a d three Eurasian species that have been in­troduced to North America for the biological control of adventive knapweeds, Centaurea spp. (Asteraceae) (White and Korneyev 1989, Turner et al. 1994). Umphora affinis (Frauenfeld) and U. quadrifasciata (Meigen), the best known of the introduced inducing, seedhead flies, were released in the early 1970s in British Co bia to help suppress infestations of diffuse knapweed (C. diffusa) and spotted knapweed (C. biebersteinii = C. maculosa ofAmerican authors). These weeds limit productivity in rangelands and displace native herbaceous vegetation. Larvae of b th tephritids are able to coexist in heads of their h st plants; despite negative interaction between these flies, their ef­fects on knapweed seed production are complementary (Berube 1980, Harris and Myers 1984, see also Wheeler and Stoops, 1996). Establishment of U. quadrifasciata in the West is well documented. It is known to occurn t only in British Columbia, where it was released, but it has also dispersed to, and bec me established in, California, Idaho, Montana, Ore­gon, and Washington (Maddox 1982, Julien 1992, Foote et al. 1993). Although U. quadrifasciata was released in eastern North America -Quebec in 1979 and Maryland and New York in 1983-postrelease monitoring has been scant in comparison to that in the West. Establishment was not verified until the early 1990s when it was discovered in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont (Hoebeke 1993). This tephritid has since been found in Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia (Wheeler and Stoops, 1996). Recent fieldwork n Minnesota has r ulted in the first records of U. quadrifasciata from the Midwest. Adults, including several mating pairs, were common on spotted knapweed growing along the railroad at Hinckley (Pine Co.) on 28 June 1995. Eighteen specimens (8 females, 10 males) were IBureau of Plant Industry, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Harrisburg, PAl7110. 1Wheeler: <i>Urophora Quadrifasciata</i> (Diptera: Tephritidae), An IntroduPublished by ValpoScholar, 1995236 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST Vol. 28, No.3 & 4 collected. In a much sm ller population of the host (5-6 plants), two females were collected on the same date at Eden Prairie (Hennepin Co.) near Min­neapolis. In addition, E.R. H ebeke made available his record of U. quadri­fasciata from spotted knapweed in Michigan: Kent Co., Grand Rapids, 11 Aug. 1995. Voucher specimens have been deposited in the insect collection of Cor­nell University, Ithaca, NY. Urophora quadrifasciata disperses more readily than U. affinis, but the latter species tends to become dominant where they co-occur (Berube 1980, Harris 1980, Harris and Myers 1984, Story et a1. 1992). The record of U. quadrifasciata from Minnesota and Michigan are the first for an area be ween eastern Montana in the West and western New York and western Pennsylva­nia in the East. Further collecting in this region is encouraged to document the continued spread of U. quadrifasciata and to detect the possible arrival of U. affinis. ACK..~OWLEDGMENTS I thank E. R. Hoebeke (Department of Entomology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY) for reviewing a draft of the manuscript, and allowing me to use his Michigan record of U. quadrifasciata. LITERATURE CITED Berube, D. E. 1980. Interspecific competition between Urophora affinis and U. quadri­fasciata (Diptera: Tephri idae) for ovipositional sites on diffuse knapweed (Centaurea diffusa: Compositae). Z. Angew. Entomol. 90:299-306. Foote, R. H., F. L. Blanc, and A. L. Norrbom. 1993. Handbook ofthe Fruit Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) of America North of Mexico. Cornell University Pr ss, Ithaca, N.Y. 571 pp. Harris, P. 1980. Establishment of Urophora affinis Frfld. and U. quadrifasciata (Meig.) (Diptera: Thphritidae) in Canada for the biological control of diffuse and spotted knapweed. Z. Angew. Entomol. 89:504-514. Harris, P. and J. H. Myers. 1984. Centaurea diffusa Lam. and C. maculosa Lam. s. lat., diffuse and spotted knapweed (Compositae), pp. 127-137. In: J.S. Kelleher and M. A. Hulme (eds.), Biological Control Programmes against Insects and Weeds in Canada 1969-1980. Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux, Slough, England. Hoebeke, E. R. 1993. Establishment of Urophora quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae) and Chrysolina quadrigemina (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in portions of eastern United States. Entomol. News 104:143-152. Julien, M. H. (ed). 1992. Biological Control of Weeds: A World Catalogue of Agents and their Targe  Weeds, 3rd ed. CAB International, Wallingford, UK. 186 pp. Maddox, D. M. 1982. Biological control of diffuse knapweed (Centaurea diffusa) and spotted knapweed (C. maculosa). Weed Sci. 30:76-82. Story, J. M., K. W. Boggs, and W. R. Good. 1992. Voltinism and phenological synchrony of Urophora affinis and U. quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae), two seed head flies introduced against spotted knapweed in Montana. Environ. Entomol. 21:1052-1059. 'furner, C. E., R. Sobhian, D. B. Joley, E. M. Coombs, and G. L. Piper. 1994. Establish­ment of Urophora sirunaseva (Hering) (Diptera: Tephritidae) for biological control of yellow starthistle in the western United States. Pan-Pac. Entomol. 70:206-211. Wheeler, A. G., Jr. and C. A. Stoops. 1996. Establishment of Urophora affinis on spot­ted knapweed in Pennsylvania, with new eastern U. S. records of U. quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae). Proe. Entomol. Soc. Wash. 98:93-99. White, 1. M. and V A. Korneyev. 1989. A revision of the western Palearctic species of Urophora Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Tephritidae). Syst. Entomol. 14:327-374. 2The Great Lakes Entomologist, Vol. 28, No. 3 [1995], Art. 10https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle/vol28/iss3/10

\u3ci\u3eUrophora Quadrifasciata\u3c/i\u3e (Diptera: Tephritidae), An Introduced Seedhead Fly New to Midwestern North America

ValpoScholar

The Great Lakes Entomologist 
Volume 28 
Numbers 3 & 4 -- Fall/Winter 1995 Numbers 3 & 
4 -- Fall/Winter 1995 
Article 10 
January 1995 
Urophora Quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae), An Introduced 
Seedhead Fly New to Midwestern North America 
A. G. Wheeler Jr. 
Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture 
Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle 
 Part of the Entomology Commons 
Recommended Citation 
Wheeler, A. G. Jr. 1995. "Urophora Quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae), An Introduced Seedhead Fly New 
to Midwestern North America," The Great Lakes Entomologist, vol 28 (3) 
Available at: https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle/vol28/iss3/10 
This Peer-Review Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Biology at ValpoScholar. 
It has been accepted for inclusion in The Great Lakes Entomologist by an authorized administrator of ValpoScholar. 
For more information, please contact a ValpoScholar staff member at scholar@valpo.edu. 
1995 235THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST 
UROPHORA QUADRIFASCIATA (DIPTERA: TEPHRITIDAEL 
AN 
INTRO­
DUCED SEEDHEAD FLY 
NEW 
TO MIDWESTERN NORTH AMERICA 
A. G. Wheeler, Jr. 1 
ABSTRACT 
The Old World tephritid Urophora quadrifasciata, a gall-inducing seed­
head fly, 
was released 
in western and eastern North America for the biol gical 
control of knapweeds, Centaurea spp. (Asteraceae). Its establishment in the 
West (BC, CA, ID, MT, OR, WA) and in the East (CT, MA, MD, NH, NJ, NY, 
PA, 
RI, 
VA, VT, WV) has been previously reported. Collections from eastern 
Minnesota and western Michigan in 1995 are the first for the Northcentral re­
gion of North America. 
The tephritid 
genus 
Umphora (about 100 spp.) includes eight species in­
digenous to the Nearctic Region a d three Eurasian species that have been in­
troduced to North America for the biological control of adventive knapweeds, 
Centaurea spp. (Asteraceae) (White and Korneyev 1989, Turner et al. 1994). 
Umphora affinis (Frauenfeld) and U. quadrifasciata (Meigen), the best known 
of the introduced inducing, seedhead flies, were released in the early 
1970s in British Co bia to help suppress infestations of diffuse knapweed 
(C. diffusa) and spotted knapweed (C. biebersteinii = C. maculosa ofAmerican 
authors). These weeds limit productivity in rangelands and displace native 
herbaceous vegetation. Larvae of b th tephritids are able to coexist in heads 
of their h st plants; despite negative interaction between these flies, their ef­
fects on knapweed seed production are complementary (Berube 1980, Harris 
and 
Myers 1984, see also Wheeler 
and Stoops, 1996). 
Establishment of U. quadrifasciata in the West is well documented. It is 
known to occurn t only in British Columbia, where it was released, but it has 
also dispersed to, and bec me established in, California, Idaho, Montana, Ore­
gon, and Washington (Maddox 1982, Julien 1992, Foote et al. 1993). Although 
U. quadrifasciata was released in eastern North America -Quebec in 1979 
and 
Maryland 
and New York in 1983-postrelease monitoring has been scant 
in 
comparison to 
that in the West. Establishment was not verified until the 
early 
1990s 
when it was discovered in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New 
Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont 
(Hoebeke 1993). This tephritid has since been found in Maryland, Virginia, 
and 
West Virginia (Wheeler 
and Stoops, 1996). 
Recent fieldwork n Minnesota has r ulted in the first records of U. 
quadrifasciata from the Midwest. Adults, including several mating pairs, 
were common on spotted knapweed growing along the railroad at Hinckley 
(Pine Co.) on 28 June 1995. Eighteen specimens (8 females, 10 males) were 
IBureau of Plant Industry, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Harrisburg, 
PAl7110. 
1
Wheeler: <i>Urophora Quadrifasciata</i> (Diptera: Tephritidae), An Introdu
Published by ValpoScholar, 1995
236 THE GREAT LAKES ENTOMOLOGIST Vol. 28, No.3 & 4 
collected. In a much sm ller population of the host (5-6 plants), two females 
were collected on the same date at Eden Prairie (Hennepin Co.) near Min­
neapolis. In addition, E.R. H ebeke made available his record of U. quadri­
fasciata from spotted knapweed in Michigan: Kent Co., Grand Rapids, 11 Aug. 
1995. Voucher specimens have been deposited in the insect collection of Cor­
nell University, Ithaca, NY. 
Urophora quadrifasciata disperses more readily than U. affinis, but the 
latter species tends to become dominant where they co-occur (Berube 1980, 
Harris 
1980, 
Harris and Myers 1984, Story et a1. 1992). The record of U. 
quadrifasciata from Minnesota and Michigan are the first for an area be ween 
eastern Montana in the 
West 
and western New York and western Pennsylva­
nia in the East. Further 
collecting 
in this region is encouraged to document 
the 
continued 
spread of U. quadrifasciata and to detect the possible arrival of 
U. affinis. 
ACK..~OWLEDGMENTS 
I thank E. R. Hoebeke (Department of Entomology, Cornell University, 
Ithaca, 
NY) for reviewing a 
draft of the manuscript, and allowing me to use 
his Michigan record of U. quadrifasciata. 
LITERATURE CITED 
Berube, D. E. 1980. Interspecific competition between Urophora affinis and U. quadri­
fasciata (Diptera: Tephri idae) for ovipositional sites on diffuse knapweed (Centaurea 
diffusa: Compositae). Z. Angew. Entomol. 90:299-306. 
Foote, R. H., F. L. Blanc, and A. L. Norrbom. 1993. Handbook ofthe Fruit Flies (Diptera: 
Tephritidae) of America North of Mexico. Cornell University Pr ss, Ithaca, N.Y. 571 
pp. 
Harris, P. 
1980. 
Establishment of Urophora affinis Frfld. and U. quadrifasciata (Meig.) 
(Diptera: Thphritidae) in Canada for the biological control of diffuse and spotted 
knapweed. Z. Angew. Entomol. 89:504-514. 
Harris, P. and J. 
H. Myers. 1984. 
Centaurea diffusa Lam. and C. maculosa Lam. s. lat., 
diffuse and spotted knapweed (Compositae), pp. 127-137. In: J.S. Kelleher and M. A. 
Hulme 
(eds.), Biological Control 
Programmes against Insects and Weeds in Canada 
1969-1980. Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux, Slough, England. 
Hoebeke, E. R. 1993. Establishment of Urophora quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae) 
and Chrysolina quadrigemina (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in portions of eastern 
United States. 
Entomol. News 104:143-152. Julien, M. 
H. (ed). 1992. Biological Control of Weeds: A World Catalogue 
of Agents and 
their Targe  
Weeds, 
3rd ed. CAB International, Wallingford, UK. 186 pp. 
Maddox, D. M. 1982. Biological control of diffuse knapweed (Centaurea diffusa) and 
spotted knapweed (C. maculosa). Weed Sci. 30:76-82. 
Story, J. M., K. W. Boggs, and W. R. Good. 1992. Voltinism and phenological synchrony 
of Urophora affinis and U. quadrifasciata (Diptera: Tephritidae), two seed head flies 
introduced against spotted knapweed in Montana. Environ. Entomol. 21:1052-1059. 
'furner, C. E., R. Sobhian, D. B. Joley, E. M. Coombs, and G. L. Piper. 1994. Establish­
ment 
of 
Urophora sirunaseva (Hering) (Diptera: Tephritidae) for biological control of 
yellow starthistle in the western United States. Pan-Pac. Entomol. 70:206-211. 
Wheeler, A. G., Jr. and C. A. Stoops. 1996. Establishment of Urophora affinis on spot­
ted 
knapweed 
in Pennsylvania, with new eastern U. S. records of U. quadrifasciata 
(Diptera: Tephritidae). Proe. Entomol. Soc. Wash. 98:93-99. 
White, 1. M. and V A. Korneyev. 1989. A revision of the western Palearctic species of 
Urophora Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Tephritidae). Syst. Entomol. 14:327-374. 
2
The Great Lakes Entomologist, Vol. 28, No. 3 [1995], Art. 10
https://scholar.valpo.edu/tgle/vol28/iss3/10


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\u3ci\u3eUrophora Quadrifasciata\u3c/i\u3e (Diptera: Tephritidae), An Introduced Seedhead Fly New to Midwestern North America

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