Rhopalomyia solidaginis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Rhopalomyia solidaginis, the goldenrod bunch gall, is a species of gall midges, insects in the family Cecidomyiidae. The galls of this species have the following host species of goldenrods: Solidago altissima, Solidago canadensis, and Solidago rugosa. They have been found across eastern North America.
This species is bivoltine and induces different bud galls in the spring and summer on three different host plants. The spring galls are small and difficult to locate. Galled plants are sometimes stunted. Each gall typically contains only one chamber in the middle of the apical meristem and contains a single larva. Occasionally 2-3 chambers are found in the same gall and may be attached to each other longitudinally.
For the summer galls there are white chambers that are similar to those in the spring galls appear in mid-July. Each chamber contains a single larva that faces downwards and is surrounded by a group of short and narrow leaves, which are in turn surrounded by longer and wider leaves that form a distinct subunit within the gall. Typically, 2-5 subunits are clumped together at the shoot apex to form a rosette gall that is 3–5 cm in diameter.
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| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Point Pelee National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Montreal | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Goldenrod Bunch Gall Midge sighting in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 18 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 379th most-seen of the 822 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.
March and June–September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Goldenrod Bunch Gall Midge in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April–May and October–February, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Goldenrod Bunch Gall Midge sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Goldenrod Bunch Gall Midge sightings, Great Smoky Mountains National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Point Pelee National Park (Canada, about 10%).
Same family: Cecidomyiidae
The closest relatives of the Goldenrod Bunch Gall Midge that you can see in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (family Cecidomyiidae, Gall and Forest Midges) are Ocellate Gall Midge (about 10%), Oak Leaf Gall Midge (about 10%) and Wood Nettle Gall Midge (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Goldenrod Bunch Gall Midge is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (18 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
