DESCRIPTION:  Up to 6.5mm in length. A small but gorgeous little Tephritis Fly that has a pale creamy head (with a suggestion of pale green), ginger eyes and frons.  The thorax is black with pale-creamy sides and a similarly coloured scutellum.  The abdomen is glossy black. Each wing has dark-bands that form a ‘W’ shaped-marking. BEHAVIOUR: During courtship, the male flies claim their territory by marking thistles with a scent that discourages the intrusion of other males. This scent does not attract females. The odour is detectable by humans and attracts parasites. Adults lay eggs in the host plant and after hatching the larvae burrow into the stem and form a gall.  The larvae overwinter in the gall in the third larval stage and pupate in early spring. The adult fly then chews its way out of the gall. DISTRIBUTION: Found mainly in south-east England but this species is spreading and moving northwards. HABITAT: Found primarily in grassy areas but can turn up wherever Creeping Thistle grows. PERIOD: On the wing from May right through to September.