Life history and description of immature stages of Tephritis joanae Goeden(Diptera : Tephritidae) on Ericameria pinifolia (A. Gray) H. M. Hall (Asteraceae) in southern California

Tephritis joanae Goeden is a univoltine or bivoltine, oligophagous fruit fl y (Diptera: Tephritidae) producing a single, annual, fall generation in the flower heads of Ericameria pinifolia (A. Gray) H. M. Hall (Asteraceae) bel onging to the subtribe Solidagininae of the tribe Astereae in southern Cali fornia. It also has been reared from fall-blooming flower heads off. cuneat a (A. Gray) McClatchie and E. ericoides (Lessing) Jepson in the same subtri be and from Senecio flaccidus Lessing belonging to the subtribe Senecionina e of the tribe Senecioneae. The egg, second- and third-instar larvae and pa rium are described and figured, and these immature stages are compared with those of other southern California Tephritis. The egg is covered by a smoo th, membraneous sheath of unknown function. The integumental petals of the second instar are described and figured for the first time for the genus Te phritis, as are the anterior spiracles, the lateral spiracular complexes of the metathorax and the first abdominal segment, and the posterior spiracul ar plate with its rimae and interspiracular processes. The most ventral ora l ridges of the third instar are bluntly toothed along their ventral margin s. A stelex sensillum Lies dorsolaterad and ventrolaterad, but apparently n ot mediolaterad of each posterior spiracular plate. One or two, annual gene rations are produced in southern California; it is unknown if there is a sp ring generation on still-unknown, spring-flowering, alternate hosts, or if there is solely a generation in the fall on E. pinifolia, E. ericoides, and S. flaccidus. The life cycle is of the aggregative type and overwintering occurs as long-lived, sexually immature adults. Eurytoma sp. nr. bigloviae Ashmead, E. veronia Bugbee (Hymenoptera: Eurytomidae), and Pferomalus sp. ( Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) were reared from puparia of T. joanne as solitar y, larval-pupal endoparasitoids. Additional, E. veronia, E. obtusiventrus G ahan, and Pteromalus sp. were reared from mature flower heads containing T. joanae as probable solitary primary parasitoids, as were Torymus sp. (Hyme noptera: Torymidae) and Bresema sp. (Hymenoptera: Eupelmidae).