Tipula paludosa (Tipulidae)

This family is the largest in the order Diptera.
Adult: crane fly; larva: leatherjacket.

Adults:

These adults resemble overgrown mosquitoes with long legs, or daddy-long-legs with wings. The legs are easily broken off. Common in spring and fall.

Larvae:

Known as leatherjackets. These maggots browse on grass roots and have also been known to strip all the root hairs and bark off the roots of bare root spruce stock in commercial nurseries.

Damage:

Adults cause no damage. Larvae feed on roots of seedlings. Strip bark from around root collar.

Principal Hosts:

Most coniferous species.

Economic Importance:

Relatively minor.

References and Links:

EAG: 551-553; FC: 413.

See Diseases and Insects in British Columbia Forest Seedling Nurseries.