Karamu leafminer facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Karamu leafminer |
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The Acrocercops zorionella, also known as the karamu leafminer, is a tiny moth. It belongs to the Gracillariidae family. This moth is very special because it is endemic to New Zealand. This means it is found only there and nowhere else in the world!
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What is the Karamu Leafminer?
The Karamu leafminer is a small moth. It gets its name from the way its young, called larvae, eat. These larvae "mine" or tunnel inside the leaves of certain plants.
Where Does it Live?
This moth lives only in New Zealand. Its larvae feed on the leaves of several types of Coprosma plants. These include Coprosma grandiflora, Coprosma lucida, Coprosma retusa, Coprosma robusta and Coprosma tenuifolia. The Karamu plant is a common food source for them.
How Does it Eat?
The larvae of the Karamu leafminer are very clever eaters. They dig tunnels right inside the leaves of their host plants.
The Leaf Mine
The larva starts its tunnel, or "mine," by digging into the leaf from the bottom of its egg. At first, the mine is a long, thin, wiggly tunnel that slowly gets wider. The first part of this tunnel is on the underside of the leaf. It looks white and shiny when light reflects off it.
Later, the rest of the tunnel moves to the upper surface of the leaf. In its final stage, the tunnel suddenly gets much bigger. It becomes a large, irregular blotch. This blotch often follows the main vein or edge of the leaf.
The mine usually looks white or light green. Sometimes, parts of it can turn a bright reddish-brown. If the leaf is thick, the part covering the blotch might look mottled with different shades of green. This depends on how close the tunnel is to the outside of the leaf.
Frass and Multiple Mines
The waste left by the larva, called frass, is very small and black. It looks like fine grains. At first, it forms a thin line along one side of the tunnel. After the larva sheds its skin for the first time, the frass grains are scattered all over the floor of the tunnel. It's rare to find a leaf with more than two of these tunnels in it.
