Gall-inducing insect Gall-inducing insect A gall-inducing insect is any insect that can cause the growth of galls within plants. The term gall fly is also used to cover these species, although most are not true flies. There are several groups of insects that meet this description. They include the gall wasps, scales, gall midges, aphids, psyllids and certain species of leafminer flies. Galls are growth deformities induced in certain plants by various insects which are mostly species-specific. The gall's form or type depends on what organism is attacking the plant and where the plant is being attacked. Based on the form, there
Leafcutter ant foraged food, mainly consisting of leaves, it is protected from "Escovopsis" by the antibiotic secretions of Actinobacteria (genus "Pseudonocardia"). This mutualistic micro-organism lives in the metapleural glands of the ant. Actinobacteria are responsible for producing the majority of the world's antibiotics today. When the ants are out collecting leaves, they are at risk of attack by some species of phorid flies, parasitoids that lay eggs into the crevices of the worker ants' heads. Often, a minim will sit on a worker ant and ward off any attack. Also, the wrong type of fungus can grow during cultivation. "Escovopsis", a highly