boxelder pouchgall mite

(Aceria negundi)

Conservation Status
IUCN Red List

not listed

NatureServe

NNR - Unranked

Minnesota

not listed

 
boxelder pouchgall mite
 
Description

Boxelder pouchgall mite is 7 1000 (180 microns) long, about as long as a human hair is wide, and 21 10000 (55 microns) wide. The human eye cannot see particles smaller than 50 to 60 microns, so this mite is probably invisible to most people. It is most easily identified by the type of growth (gall) it produces and the plant species on which it is found.

Boxelder pouchgall mite is found exclusively on boxelder (Acer negundo). In the spring, the mite forms a hollow, dull tan or gray pocket on the under surface of the leaf. The pocket is covered with a mass of felty whitish hairs. On the upper surface, it appears as an irregular, blister-like bump. The galls are solitary, though there are usually many galls on a single leaf.

 

Size

Total length: 7 1000 (180 microns)

 

Similar Species

This is the only mite that causes bladder galls on boxelder leaves.

Habitat

Boxelder

Biology

Season

Spring through fall

 

Behavior

 

 

Life Cycle

 

 

Food

 

Distribution

Distribution Map

 

Sources

24, 29, 30, 82, 83.

6/13/2025    
     

Occurrence

 

Taxonomy
Class Arachnida (arachnids)
Subclass Acari (mites and ticks)
Order Acariformes (mites)

Superfamily

Eriophyoidea

Family

Eriophyidae (gall and rust mites)

Subfamily

Eriophyinae

Tribe

Aceriini

Genus

Aceria

   

Order
The family Eriophyidae was formerly classified within the order Trombidiformes, specifically in the suborder Prostigmata. However, molecular phylogenetic analyses, beginning in the early 2010s, have strongly challenged this placement. Current research indicates that Eriophyidae represents a very ancient and basal lineage within the order Acariformes. While Acariformes was historically treated as a superorder by some classifications, it is now widely recognized as one of the two major orders of mites (along with Parasitiformes). Due to ongoing debates about their precise relationships with other mite groups, Eriophyidae is currently placed directly under Acariformes without being assigned to a specific suborder.

   

Subordinate Taxa

 

   

Synonyms

Eriophyes negundi

   

Common Names

box elder pouch gall mite

boxelder erineum mite

boxelder pouch gall mite

boxelder pouchgall mite

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glossary

Gall

An abnormal growth on a plant produced in response to an insect larva, mite, bacteria, or fungus.

 

 

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boxelder pouchgall mite  

boxelder pouchgall mite

 

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Created: 5/30/2019

Last Updated:

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