At the moment there are lots of oak galls visible in the Touraine Val de Loire.
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| Oak artichoke gall. |
Oak Artichoke galls are caused by the cynipid wasp Andricus fecundator laying its eggs in oak shoots. The plant reacts by forming a growth around the 'invader', which in this case resembles a miniature artichoke flower.
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| Spangle and Cherry galls. |
The little ones are called Spangle Galls, and are made by the tiny wasp Neuroterus quercusbaccarum. In French they are called les galles-lentilles,
which I think is even better than spangles! They do look very like
lentils. The big bobbly ones are called Cherry Galls and they are made
by the equally inconspicuous wasp Cynips quercusfolii. In French they are les Galles-cerises du chêne.
1 comment:
I’m trying to find out why the first photo is called oak artichoke gall. This look more like a chrysanthemum than an artichoke flower.
Google Images show oak galls at an early stage and, effectively, the unopened (?} galls look like artichoke flower buds or pine cones before they open,
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