44 
BRITISH GALLS 
Economic Notes 
There are not many troublesome pests amongst the gall- 
causing Hymenoptera; the attacks of the great majority 
are confined to uncultivated plants. Some representatives 
which are not gall-causers often cause damage in other 
ways; we may mention Nematus ribesii Curtis, which 
defoliates gooseberry and currant bushes; Lophyvus pini 
Curtis, which eats the leaves of the Scotch Pine; Athalia 
spinarum Fabr., which occasionally plays havoc in turnip 
fields; and Cephus pygmaeus Linn., which attacks the stems 
of various cereals and grasses. 
Two gall-causing Cynipidae are alluded to in Miss 
Ormerod’s Manual—viz., Cynips Kollari and Neuroterus 
lenticulavis. 11 With the exception of the marble gall and 
the common spangle galls, which sometimes so completely 
load the back of the leaves as to cause premature withering, 
it does not appear that any kinds are often materially 
hurtful.” We have had abundant evidence, though, during 
the past summer (igu), of the destructive influences of the 
so-called “ oyster ” gall, caused by the presence of the 
larvae of Andricus ostreiis. Quite early in the summer the 
leaves of Quercus pedunculata in many districts showed 
marked peripheral browning. The conditions they pre¬ 
sented are well shown in Plate I., Figs, i and 2, which 
show respectively the upper and lower surface of a leaf 
gathered on August 23, when many of its galls had fallen 
away. In the Haslemere district the majority of the trees 
shed their leaves prematurely, and it cannot be doubted 
that their growth w r as seriously checked. Cameron remarks"' 
concerning Cynips Kollari: “ Various attempts have been 
made to utilize these galls for ink-making purposes, but 
without any practical result, owing to the paucity of tannic 
acid they contain as opposed to the Aleppo and other galls 
—only some 17 as against over 50 per cent. The only 
use made of them is for ornamenting fancy baskets, fern- 
* “ British Phytophagous Hymenoptera,” iv., p. 113. 
