Leaf galls on Ground-elder
Introduction
The photograph on this page of Leaf galls on Ground-elder by Lairich Rig as part of the Geograph project.
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Leaf galls on Ground-elder
Image: © Lairich Rig Taken: 25 May 2018
The plants were in the area shown just to the left (north) of the path in Image These pale yellowish lumps in the leaf-blade of Ground-elder (Aegopodium podagria) are galls caused by the fungus Puccinia aegopodii. Smaller, dark (but shiny) dots can be seen on some of them; they were much more abundant on the underside. These dark spots might easily be taken for eggs or larvae, but they are telia (singular "telium"), a reproductive structure produced by the fungus. Fungi often produce several distinct kinds of spores, and telia produce a kind known as teliospores. There were quite a few examples of this gall alongside the path. The identification guide "British Plant Galls" (2ed; Redfern & Shirley, 2011) notes that this gall is "probably common but overlooked".
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Image Location
Latitude
55.951364
Longitude
-4.569475