Cynips quercusechinus

Cynips quercusechinus, the urchin gall wasp, is a species of gall wasp in the family Cynipidae. It induces galls in the leaves and leaf buds of blue oak and scrub oak. Like other oak gall wasps, it has two generations: a bisexual generation, and a parthenogenic female generation. In spring, the hatching bisexual generation produces hollow green galls in leaf buds. In summer, the unisexual generation induces its galls, which are red or pink and resemble sea urchins, on the undersides of leaves. These galls are about 10 millimetres (0.39 in) in diameter.^[1] The galls fall with the leaves in autumn, and the larvae inside of them emerge as adults in the spring and lay their eggs.^[2][3]

Urchin gall wasp
Gall formed by Cynips quercusechinus
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Cynipidae
Genus:	Cynips
Species:	C. quercusechinus
Binomial name
Cynips quercusechinus Osten Sacken, 1870
Synonyms
Antron quercusechinus

This species was first described by Carl Robert Osten-Sacken in 1870 based on specimens from California.^[4]