Acanthiophilus helianthi (Rossi, 1794)
(Knapweed Ghost)

Interactions where Acanthiophilus helianthi is the controlling partner and gains from the process

The following relationships have been collated from the published literature (see 'References').

Stage Summary Taxon Vernacular Classification References Darwin Classification of Active Taxon Active Taxon Active Vernacular Active Taxon Uncertain Active State Active Part Active Stage Relationship Relationship Uncertain Relationship Geography Darwin Classification of Passive Taxon Passive Taxon Passive Vernacular Passive Taxon Uncertain Passive State Passive Part Passive Stage Passive Taxon's significance to Active Taxon Indoors etc Season
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Xanthium spinosum Spiny Cocklebur Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Xanthium spinosum/Xanthium spinosumspiny cockleburlivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Carlina vulgaris Carline Thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Carlina vulgaris/Carlina vulgariscarline thistlelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Carthamus lanatus Downy Safflower Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Carthamus lanatus/Carthamus lanatusdowny safflowerlivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Carthamus tinctorius Safflower Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Carthamus tinctorius/Carthamus tinctoriussafflowerlivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Carduus a genus of thistles Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Carduus/Carduusa genus of thistleslivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Centaurea asperaQuestionable Rough Star-thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Centaurea aspera/Centaurea asperarough star-thistle?livecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Centaurea calcitrapa Red Star-thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Centaurea calcitrapa/Centaurea calcitrapared star-thistlelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Centaurea cyanus Cornflower Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Centaurea cyanus/Centaurea cyanuscornflowerlivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Centaurea jacea Brown Knapweed Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Centaurea jacea/Centaurea jaceabrown knapweedlivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum UK/IrelandRestricted Centaurea nigra Common Knapweed, Lesser Knapweed, Hardheads Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederUK and/or Eire /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Centaurea nigra/Centaurea nigracommon knapweed, lesser knapweed, hardheadslivecapitulumSole
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Centaurea scabiosa Greater Knapweed Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Centaurea scabiosa/Centaurea scabiosagreater knapweedlivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Centaurea solstitialis Yellow Star-thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Centaurea solstitialis/Centaurea solstitialisyellow star-thistlelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Cirsium arvense Creeping Thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Cirsium arvense/Cirsium arvensecreeping thistlelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Cirsium vulgareQuestionable Spear Thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Cirsium vulgare/Cirsium vulgarespear thistle?livecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Cnicus benedictus Blessed Thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Cnicus benedictus/Cnicus benedictusblessed thistlelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Cynara scolymus Globe Artichoke Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Cynara scolymus/Cynara scolymusglobe artichokelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Serratula tinctoria Saw-wort Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Serratula tinctoria/Serratula tinctoriasaw-wortlivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Silybum marianum Milk Thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Silybum marianum/Silybum marianummilk thistlelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Sonchus oleraceus Smooth Sow-thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Sonchus oleraceus/Sonchus oleraceussmooth sow-thistlelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Leucanthemum vulgare Oxeye Daisy, Moon-daisy, Marguerite Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Leucanthemum vulgare/Leucanthemum vulgareoxeye daisy, moon-daisy, margueritelivecapitulum
larva larva feeds within live capitulum Foreign Scolymus hispanicus Golden Thistle Asterales: Asteraceae Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae), White, I.M., 1988
 /Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Diptera/Tephritidae/Acanthiophilus helianthi/Acanthiophilus helianthiknapweed ghostlarva Foodplant / internal feederForeign /Plantae/Tracheophyta/Magnoliopsida/Asterales/Asteraceae/Scolymus hispanicus/Scolymus hispanicusgolden thistlelivecapitulum

Acanthiophilus helianthi (Knapweed Ghost) may also be included in 'feeds on' relations listed under the following higher taxa:

Acanthiophilus helianthi (Knapweed Ghost) may be included in 'fed on by' relations listed under the following higher taxa:

Author & YearTitleSource
White, I.M., 1988Tephritid Flies (Diptera: Tephritidae)Handbooks for the Identification of British Insects , Vol 10. Part 5a, 134pp, The Royal Entomological Society of London
Taxonomic hierarchy:
SpeciesAcanthiophilus helianthi (Knapweed Ghost)
FamilyTEPHRITIDAE (gall flies, greater fruit flies)
SuperfamilyTEPHRITOIDEA (lance and picture-wing flies)
Section Acalyptratae (acalypterate flies)
InfraorderMuscomorpha (hover, scuttle, acalypterate, dung, house & parasitoid flies, blue/green bottles)
SuborderBRACHYCERA (short-horned flies)
OrderDIPTERA (two-winged flies)
Division Endopterygota (bees, beetles, flies, moths and other insects with wings developing internally)
InfraclassNeoptera (bees, beetles, flies, grasshoppers, moths and other advanced insects)
SubclassPTERYGOTA (bees, beetles, dragonflies, flies, grasshoppers, moths and other winged insects)
ClassINSECTA (true insects)
SubphylumHEXAPODA (insects and other 6-legged organisms)
PhylumARTHROPODA (arthropods)
SuperphylumECDYSOZOA (skin shedders)
CladeBilateria (bilaterally symmetrical animals)
SubkingdomEUMETAZOA (metazoans)
KingdomANIMALIA (animals)
DomainEukaryota (eukaryotes)
LifeBIOTA (living things)
NBNNBN (data.nbn.org.uk) has a distribution map for Acanthiophilus helianthi (Knapweed Ghost)

Acanthiophilus helianthi (Knapweed Ghost) may be included in identification literature listed under the following higher taxa:

Literature listed under the following higher taxa may be relevant to Acanthiophilus helianthi (Knapweed Ghost):

Creative Commons License
This website is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence.

Unless otherwise expressly stated, all original material on the BioInfo website by Malcolm Storey is licensed under the above Creative Commons Licence.

BioInfo - Wildlife Information (UK)