Pest profile

Grape Cane Gallmaker

Ampeloglypter sesostris · Coleoptera: Curculionidae[2]

Grape cane gallmaker produces noticeable red galls on new grape shoots just above the nodes.[1]

Grape cane gallmaker gall, a dark reddish swelling on a green grape shoot
Grape cane gallmaker gall, a dark reddish swelling on a green grape shoot. (c) daksu, some rights reserved (CC BY) — via iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0

How to identify it

  • The adult is a dark brown snout beetle about 1/8 inch long; the grub is white, legless and has a brown head.[1]
  • Galls are reddish swellings 3/4 to 1 inch long on shoot growth.[1]

Look-alikes

Look-alikeHow to tell them apart
Grape cane girdlerA close relative that rings canes with punctures so the tips break off; it prefers Virginia creeper.[1]

Where it lives

It's a common grape pest in Kentucky, with galls usually along vineyard borders near wooded, trashy areas or at row ends.[1]

US map: public records from 7 states since 1990 (GBIF).

Biology and life cycle

In May and June the female lays an egg in holes she chews just above a node when canes are 10 to 20 inches long.[1]

The larva feeds inside the swelling, pupates there, and adults emerge in August and overwinter in trashy borders.[1]

Damage and signs

  • Most galls sit beyond the fruit clusters and usually cause no serious yield loss; galled canes can still bear the next year.[1]

Health risk

It feeds on plants; UK Extension mentions no risk to people.[1]

Control

Sanitation

If galls will be pruned out, do it by mid-July, before adults leave the galls.[1]

Pesticides

Insecticides usually aren't needed because the injury doesn't reduce yield.[1]

Common questions

What are the red swellings on my new grape shoots?
They're likely galls from the grape cane gallmaker, a small snout beetle.[1]
Do the galls hurt my grape crop?
Usually not; most are beyond the fruit clusters, and galled canes can produce a crop the next year.[1]

Sources

  1. University of Kentucky Entomology (ENTFACT), “Grape Cane Gallmaker and Grape Cane Girdler (ENTFACT-223).” entomology.mgcafe.uky.edu/ef223 (accessed 2026-10-06)
  2. iNaturalist, “Ampeloglypter sesostris taxon page (order and family).” www.inaturalist.org/taxa/497178 (accessed 2026-10-06)

Updated 2026-10-14. Built from sourced records. Spot an error? Tell us.