Seed-head-feeder
Guides
Ceroxys
picture-winged flies
Ceroxys is a genus of picture-winged flies in the family Ulidiidae, comprising approximately 20 described species distributed primarily across the Northern Hemisphere. Adults are recognized by their distinctive patterned wings featuring dark spots, bars, or lines on a translucent background. The genus includes notable species such as Ceroxys latiusculus, which is common in western North America and frequently observed indoors during fall and winter. Larval development occurs in plant seed heads, particularly Senecio species.
Gymnocarena diffusa
Sunflower Receptacle Maggot
Gymnocarena diffusa is a tephritid fruit fly that develops exclusively on sunflower (Helianthus annuus). Adults are pale with patterned wings and feed on extrafloral nectaries. Females lay eggs between bract layers on sunflower heads, and larvae bore into the head to feed on developing tissues. The species is known from North Dakota and has been observed in Canada and the United States. It completes one generation per year, with larvae overwintering in soil after exiting the sunflower head.
Limnaecia phragmitella
Shy Cosmet Moth
Limnaecia phragmitella, commonly known as the Shy Cosmet Moth, is a small micro-moth in the family Cosmopterigidae. Adults have a wingspan of 15–22 mm with ochre-coloured forewings bearing distinctive grey-brown markings and white-edged spots. The species is widespread across Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and North America. Larvae are more frequently encountered than adults, mining within the seed heads and stems of bulrushes (Typha species).