SERPENTINE LEAFMINER, Liriomyza brassicae (Riley) and others
Description Picture Damage
  • adults are small flies which are 1/8 inch long
  • yellow and black thorax and a black head
  • adults fly quickly for short distances when disturbed
  • maggot is 1/8 inch long white, legless and wedge-shaped
  • pupae are light brown, oval and ringed with ridges

    • Photo credit: Extension Entomology, Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University

  • maggots eat leaf tissue between the upper and lower surfaces
  • leave slender, white winding trails through the leaf's interior
  • leaves, especially peppers, are weakened