A Hunch

Yesterday, I got out the microscopes to check a hunch.

The ground is covered with gobs of these on our paths in the woods. Were these seed looking things really Hackberry berries? I doubted it because overhead were Post Oaks.
A closeup of one.
So I carefully sliced it off in thin sections as seen on the right.
Using my Xacto blade I found the critter!

It was very tiny. For a comparison of the size the photo with the metal pointy tool shows the critter near the point. 1.2mm equals about 3/64 inch. The gall was about 5/32 inch (4-5mm) across.

What a cute little creature! It would be helpful for identification if I knew what part of the tree they were from. However I have not found any on the lower branches or leaves. I should raise some, but I think not this time. So now I know that there will be thousands of these creatures emerging next spring. Delightful! We need all the insects we can get. 🙂

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Keep looking!

The more you know, the more you see and the more you see, the more you know

7 Comments

  1. I have just recently noticed these under my post oak. Millions it seems. There are none under any other oaks. Some are attached to the leaves as well as on twigs. I suspected that they were galls and you have confirmed it! I have lived with this post oak for 11 years and have never observed this before.

  2. Yes a very cute little critter!
    And wouldn’t it be fun to see all those rare and wonderful lichens and mosses in person? I can only dream – but then we have alot of pretty cool ones on this side of the pond too

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