Andricus quercuscalifornicus
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Andricus quercuscalifornicus (occasionally Andricus californicus), or the California gall wasp, is a small wasp species that induces oak apple galls on white oaks, primarily the valley oak (Quercus lobata) but also other species such as Quercus berberidifolia, and Quercus garryana in Oregon. The California gall wasp is considered an ecosystem engineer, capable of manipulating the growth of galls for their own development. It is found from Washington, Oregon, and California to northern regions of Mexico. Often multiple wasps in different life stages occupy the same gall. The induced galls help establish complex insect communities, promoting the diversification in niche differentiation. Furthermore, the adaptive value of these galls could be attributed their ecological benefits such as nutrition, provision of microenvironment, and enemy avoidance.
The adult wasps are small, stout and brown, about 5 mm long with clear wings nearly twice the length of the body. The antennae are filiform and about the same length as the legs. Despite their size they are one of the largest species of cynipid wasps.
The gall itself is a typical oak apple gall in appearance, roughly spherical... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Portland | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Seattle | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a California Gall Wasp sighting in San Diego on a given day, based on 101 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 104th most-seen of the 693 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April–May and August–October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a California Gall Wasp in San Diego on a given day, against under 5% in June–July and November–March, the lowest months. Those are among San Diego's driest months, with about 10 mm of rain a month against 55 mm in February.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most California Gall Wasp sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 6
Of the 6 cities where we can rate California Gall Wasp sightings, San Diego ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Sacramento (United States, about 30%), San Francisco (United States, about 10%) and Portland (United States, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the California Gall Wasp is recorded against all the insects logged in San Diego (101 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
