Reticulodermis lithogalla García-Martiñón & Pujade-Villar, 2024

García-Martiñón, Rosa D., Equihua-Martínez, Amando, Estrada-Venegas, Edith G., Melika, George, Romero-Rangel, Silvia, Cuesta-Porta, Víctor & Pujade-Villar, Juli, 2024, Reticulodermis lithogalla gen. nov. and sp. nov. of oak gall wasp from Mexico (Hymenoptera, Cynipidae), Zootaxa 5486 (1), pp. 109-120 : 114-115

Reticulodermis lithogalla García-Martiñón & Pujade-Villar sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:68DD1A2C-A74E-4E79-8CF0-EA02329AF10A

( Figs 1–3 )

Type material. Holotype asexual female (ŏ) deposited in UB (JP-V col.) with the following labels: “ Barrios , San Francisco-San Nicolás Guadalupe, Municipio de San Felipe del Progreso (Estado de México, MEX)’ (white label), 19°27´39´´N 100°2´6´´W Q. crassipes , (04.ii.2023) 13-19.ii.2023 (leg. García-Martinón)’ (white label) , Holotype ŏ Reticulodermis lithogalla García-Martiñón & Pujade-Villar n. gen & n. sp. (red label). PARATYPES (26ŏ) with the same data as holotype: 8ŏ deposited in UB (JP-V col.), 2ŏ deposited in PHDNRL, 16ŏ deposited in Colpos .

Etymology. Related to the shape of the gall which resembles a stone, from Greek: λΊΘΟς líthos ‘stone’ and Latin galla ‘gall’.

Description. Asexual female.

Length. 1.9–2.4 mm (n = 8)

Coloration ( Fig. 3a ). Head yellowish to light brown; clypeus and mandibles darker, teeth of mandibles not darkened; lower part of the face, below the toruli, slightly darker. Antennae dark brown, with partially lighter scape and pedicel. Mesonotum colored as the head; mesoscutum with dark brown areas running along the anterior lines, notaulus and parapsidal lines; lower part of the mesopleura (sometimes also the lateral margins), metapleura, propodeum and mesoscutellar foveae dark brown to black. Legs, including the coxae, same color as mesosoma. Wing venation brown. Metasoma, including hypopygium, light brown, darker than mesosoma, dorsally darker than basally.

Head ( Figs 1a–c ). Transversely ovate, reticulate, with the interocellar area elevated dorsally above the head in frontal view, 1.2–1.3× as broad as high, in dorsal view 2.2× as broad as long and narrower than the mesosoma. Transfacial line 1.4× as long as height of eye. Torulus located slightly above half height of eye; distance between toruli 0.5× the diameter of the torulus, with some fine transverse carinae; diameter of torulus slightly shorter than distance between torulus and eye. Gena reticulate, broadened behind eye in frontal view, broader than the width of eye in lateral view. Lower face alutaceous with numerous carinae radiating from the clypeus and almost reaching eye margin, sparsely pubescent; slightly elevated median area below toruli without carinae and rugae. Clypeus slightly trapezoid, nearly quadrangular, shining, almost smooth, emarginate ventrally and weakly incised medially. Anterior tentorial pits, epistomal sulcus and clypeo-pleurostomal lines present, weakly impressed. Front, vertex, ocellar area and occiput reticulate, glabrous, without carinae and rugae. Ocelli equal in size; POL 2.0× as long as OOL distance, OOL almost 2.0× as long as diameter of ocellus and a slightly longer than LOL. Postocciput and postgena alutaceous, with few setae. Occipital foramen 2.0× as high as height of postgenal bridge; posterior tentorial pit ovate; gular sulcus slightly impressed, incomplete; hypostomal carina emarginate, continuing into the postgenal sulcus.

Antenna ( Fig. 1e ) almost equal in length to the head+mesosoma, with 12 flagellomeres, sometimes with an inconspicuous suture between F11–F12, and in some teratological specimens with only 10 flagellomeres. Antennal formula 19: 13×7: 29: 23: 20: 17: 15: 14: 12: 12: 12: 12: 11: 14. Placodeal sensilla on F3–F12, absent on F1 and F2, on F3 present in the distal half only.

Mesosoma ( Figs 2a–d ). Slightly longer than high in lateral view, with sparse white setae. Pronotum reticulate-rugulose, sculpture less prominent and with some wrinkles in ventral part. Mesoscutum slightly broader than long, reticulate, sometimes with coarser irregular rugae in the posterior third between the reticulate sculpture. Notaulus absent or inconspicuous, partially visible and impressed on posterior third, reticulate, wrinkled. Anterior parallel line visible, coriaceous-alutaeous, extending to half-length of mesoscutum, to tegulae level, slightly diverge anteriorly and slightly dilated distally. Parapsidal line visible, coriaceous-alutaceous, extending beyond tegula. Median mesoscutal line absent. Parascutal carina reaching anterior part of mesoscutum, smooth, with some carinae till tegula level. Mesoscutellum 0.6× as long as mesoscutum length, slightly broader than long, posteriorly rounded, uniformly reticulate-rugulose, sometimes with inconspicuous rugae between the sculpture, overhanging metanotum. Mesoscutellar fovea inconspicuous, anterior part of mesoscutellum depressed in a shallow continuous pit, rugulose with longitudinal rugae, not delimited posteriorly; median carina not always present, inconspicuous. Circumscutellar carina absent. Mesopleuron reticulate, with setae at the base, speculum alutaceous-coriaceous; mesopleural triangle delicately rugose, with dense setae. Metapleural sulcus reaching mesopleuron at 2/3 of its height. Axillula inconspicuous, reticulate, with white setae. Subaxillular bar shining, smooth, higher posteriorly; postalar process absent. Metascutellum reticulate-rugulose, higher than height of shining rugose ventral impressed area. Metanotal trough alutaceous, shining, with few setae. Propodeum rugose and glabrous centrally; propodeal carina absent, inconspicuous, fragmented; lateral propodeal area alutaceous, with few setae and some radiating carinae around the nucha. Nucha with dorso-lateral wrinkles.

Legs with reticulate sculpture. Tarsal claws simple, without basal lobe ( Fig. 1d ).

Fore wing ( Fig. 3a ). Longer than body length, hyaline, without cilia on margins. Radial cell 3.5× times as long as broad; 2r angled with short central projection; R1 straight, not reaching wing margin; Rs almost straight not reaching wing margin, not broadened in distal part. Areolet present. Rs+M visible on 4/5 of its length, its projection reaching basal vein below half of its length.

Metasoma ( Figs 2e–f ). Shorter than head+mesosoma, as long as high in lateral view; second metasomal tergum with few white setae laterally; subsequent terga weakly micropunctured. Hypopygium micropunctured. Prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium needle-like, nearly 8.0× as long as broad, with scattered white setae, without apical tuft of setae.

Gall ( Fig. 3b ). Irregularly globular, flat at the base, with a coriaceous surface, with scattered tufts of short pubescence across the gall surface; surface wrinkled, green to grayish-brown when mature. Small in size (2–4 mm wide and 4–5 mm long), on the underside of the leaves between the secondary veins, in variable numbers. Emergence holes usually located laterally.

Host. Known only from Q. crassipes Humb. & Bonpl. (section Lobatae ).

Distribution. Known from Mexico State only.

Biology. Only the asexual generation is known. The galls were collected in early February; adults emerged shortly after. The galls remain on the tree for several months after adults emerged. Several parasitoids were obtained from the following Chalcidoidea families: Torymidae (3♂ & 5♀), Eupelmidae (1♂), Eulophidae (14♂ & 19♀) and Ormyridae (2♀), and also cynipid inquilines from the tribe Synergini (6♀)

Figures

FIGURE 1. Reticulodermis lithogalla García-Martiñón & Pujade-Villar sp. nov.: (a) head, frontal view (b) head, posterior view, (c) head, dorsal view, (d) tarsal claws, (e) antenna.

FIGURE 2. Reticulodermis lithogalla García-Martiñón & Pujade-Villar sp. nov.: (a) mesosoma, dorsal view (b) mesosoma, lateral view, (c) mesosoma, posterior view, (d) propodeum, (e) metasoma, (f) ventral spine of hypopygium, ventral view.

FIGURE 3. Reticulodermis lithogalla García-Martiñón & Pujade-Villar sp. nov.: (a) habitus, (b) galls and details of an isolated gall.