I don't know what's on my Chestnut white oak.

[Tom]

They are fuzzy white balls that look like a caterpillar all folded up but are hard.  They have hairs on them too and some are reddish tinted with little protuberances.  Ya got me.




They 3/4 to fully encircle most of the terminal stems on this little tree that are 1/16 to 1/8 in diameter.

[Furby]

I've seen something kind of like that on the oaks up at the lake. No clue as to what it is though.  :

[Tom]

Oak Apple Gall, now that's a possibility.
http://www.jmu.edu/biology/k12/galls/oakapp.htm

[Tom]

Hmmmm-m-m-m   Nope.  An apple all is a slick skinned growth caused by an insect stinging a leaf bud.  This almost looks like a separate organism.

[Tom]

Ok!  ....alrghty then :D

I know what it is.  It is an Oak Hedgehog Gall produced by the sting of a Sawfly. ;D

Link to a picture

This link is a long url

The alternate generation of the Hedgehog gall appears on the leaf buds in early spring, and for many years was believed to be a separate species. Spiny Hedgehog galls can be colonial, and they remind one of a curled up wooly-bear caterpillar. They are eaten by Red Squirrels and by White-footed Mice.

[Jeff]

nifty. I like finding that weird stuff.

[SwampDonkey]

Yup a gall.

I see galls on white spruce where an insect attacks a cone bud or on basswood leaves, on the under side of the leaf.

[Kedwards]

As arnold s. would say.. " Its a Twee Tooomah "  :D

[DanG]

 :D :D :D :D

[SwampDonkey]

Tom: et al.

Here are some galls on my red oak rubra, seem to be in the pollen buds, also seen some in the emerging leaves.





cheers

[Andy Henriksen]

hi,

The original gall pictured is a Wool Sower Gall, caused by a wasp.  I read up a bit on these gall wasps, and found out that many have a pretty bizzare characteristic - they can be heterogamic, which means that one generation produces galls completely different from their parents, but similar to their grandparents.  they alternate every other generation.  apparently, the insects themselves look quite different, yet are of the same species.  Because of this, biologists are quite uncertain how many different gall wasps actually exist.  

[Jeff]

Welcome to the Forum andyhix  

[Tom]

Welcome Andy.  I found those articles interesting too.  Wouldn't it be funny if we were like that? :D

[SwampDonkey]

What about aphids that pre determine the sex of their offspring, wheather they are winged or not, or weather they are sterile or fertile. All dependant on available food sources.  :P