Paracraspis insolens ( Weld, 1926 )

Melika, George, Pujade-Villar, Juli, Nicholls, James A., Cuesta-Porta, Victor & Stone, Graham N., 2021, Three new Nearctic genera of oak cynipid gall wasps (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Cynipini): Burnettweldia Pujade-Villar, Melika & Nicholls, Nichollsiella Melika, Pujade-Villar & Stone, Disholandricus Melika, Pujade-Villar & Nicholls; and re-establishment of the genus Paracraspis Weld, Zootaxa 4993 (1), pp. 1-81 : 66-69

Paracraspis insolens ( Weld, 1926) , comb. rev.

Figs 196–207 , 209

Acraspis insolens Weld, 1926: 59 , female, gall.

Acraspis insolens Weld : Weld, 1951: 627.

Paracraspis insolens (Weld) : Weld, 1952b: 324.

Acraspis insolens (Weld) : Melika & Abrahamson, 2002: 157.

Types examined. Holotype female and 1 gall labeled as „Idyllwild Cal.”, „ Q. chrysolepis ”, red „Type No 27203, USNM ”, „Cut out Nov. 9”, „ Acraspis insolens Weld ”, deposited in the USNM (http://n 2t.net/ark:/65665/33fedfbe7- 380f-45b8-acb4-93076c82fd69), examined by GM.

Material examined. One female and one gall on one pin, labeled as „Idylwild, Cal.”, „ chrysolepis ”, „cut out Nov.”, red label „ Paratype No. 27203 USNM ”, „ Acraspis insolens Weld ”. Four galls with the same labels as the type specimen above .

Diagnosis. Paracraspis insolens most closely resembles P. patteloides , in both species the mesoscutellum and mesopleuron are delicately coriaceous ( Figs 206–207 , 216–218 ); the second metasomal tergum extending to more than 1/2 of the metasoma length. In P. insolens the body is uniformly brown; with less dense white setae, surface sculpture under setae clearly visible; the head is rounded ( Fig. 196 ); the notaulus extending to 1/2 of the mesoscutum length ( Figs 203–204 ); OOL 2.8x as long as the diameter of lateral ocellus ( Fig. 197 ); F2=F3 ( Fig. 200 ) while in P. patteloides the body is dark brown, with some lighter parts on the head and mesosoma, with very dense white setae hiding the surface sculpture, especially on the mesosoma where the notaulus is obscured and extending to 2/3 of the mesoscutum length; the head is trapezoid in frontal view ( Fig. 210 ); OOL 1.9x as long as the diameter of lateral ocellus ( Fig. 211 ); F2 1.3x as long as F3 ( Fig. 214 ).

Description. Asexual female ( Figs 196–207 ). Body, antenna, legs uniformly brown; legs with long, dense setae.

Head microreticulate to alutaceous, with white setae, denser on lower face, vertex, occiput, postocciput; 2.0x as broad as long in dorsal view; 1.2x as broad as high in frontal view and broader than mesosoma. Gena alutaceous, slightly broadened behind eye in frontal view, narrower than transverse diameter of eye in lateral view. Malar space alutaceous, without malar sulcus, with numerous delicate striae radiating from clypeus, some striae reaching eye margin; eye 2.5x as high as length of malar space. Inner margins of eyes parallel. POL 1.7x as long as OOL; OOL 2.8x as long as diameter of lateral ocellus, slightly shorter than LOL; ocelli ovate, all three equal in size. Transfacial distance 1.2x as long as height of eye and 1.4x as long as height of lower face (distance between antennal rim and ventral margin of clypeus); antennal toruli level with upper half of eye, diameter of antennal torulus 2.0x as long as distance between them, distance between torulus and eye margin slightly greater than diameter of torulus. Lower face alutaceous to microreticulate, without striae, with dense setae; slightly elevated median area coriaceous, with delicate transverse striae and dense setae. Clypeus rectangular, flat, broader than high, coriaceous, ventrally rounded, emarginate, not incised medially; anterior tentorial pit deep, epistomal sulcus and clypeo-pleurostomal line distinct. Frons, interocellar area, vertex and occiput microreticulate to alutaceous; postocciput and postgena smooth, glabrous, postocciput around occipital foramen impressed, smooth, with delicate parallel striae; posterior tentorial pits large, deep, elongate; height of oral foramen slightly longer than height of postgenal bridge+occipital foramen; occipital foramen as high as height of postgenal bridge; hypostomal carina emarginate, continuing into postgenal sulcus; postgenal sulci V-shaped, gradually bent outwards; postgenal bridge alutaceous, glabrous, anteriorly broader than width of occipital foramen. Antenna slightly shorter than body, with 13 flagellomeres (suture between F13 and F12 indistinct but present), all flagellomeres with long dense setae; pedicel slightly longer than broad, F1 longer than length of scape+pedicel, slightly longer than F2, F2 slightly longer than F3, F3 slightly longer than F4, F4 slightly longer than F5, F5 longer than F6, subsequent flagellomeres nearly equal in length, F13 shorter than F12; placodeal sensilla on F5–F13.

Mesosoma slightly longer than high in lateral view. Pronotum alutaceous to reticulate, with dense white setae, without striae laterally, emarginate along lateral edge; propleuron uniformly delicately coriaceous, without setae. Mesoscutum reticulate with dense white setae; longer than broad (width measured across base of tegulae); notaulus extending to nearly half the length of mesoscutum, gradually narrowing, with smooth, glabrous bottom; median mesoscutal line absent; anterior parallel line indistinct, extending to 1/2 of mesosoma length; parapsidal line hardly traceable, slightly elevated stripe, extending nearly to level of tegula; parascutal carina narrow, reaching anterior edge of tegula. Transscutal articulation deep, distinct, mesoscutum posteriorly emarginate. Mesoscutellum longer than broad, with subparallel sides laterally, pointed posteriorly, shorter than mesoscutum, uniformly coriaceous, shortly overhanging metanotum, with dense long white setae. Mesoscutellar foveae absent, anterior part of mesoscutellum delicately coriaceous like rest of mesoscutellar disk, without median elevated carina, in the same plane as mescutellar disk, not impressed. Mesopleuron, including speculum, uniformly delicately coriaceous, with dense white setae; mesopleural triangle delicately coriaceous, with dense white setae. Metapleural sulcus reaching mesopleuron slightly above half of its height, lower part delimiting broad triangular area with dense setae; upper part of sulcus indistinct; dorsal and lateral axillar areas delicately coriaceous, with dense setae; axillar carina broad, with longitudinal striae; subaxillular bar triangular, at most posterior end as high as height of metanotal trough. Metascutellum coriaceous, slightly higher than height of smooth, glabrous ventral impressed area; metanotal trough smooth, glabrous, with white setae. Lateral propodeal carinae weak but complete, bent slightly outwards at mid-length, without short rugae going from carina into lateral propodeal area; central propodeal area smooth, glabrous, without rugae and setae; lateral propodeal area delicately coriaceous, with dense white setae; nucha short, glabrous, with net of strong irregular rugae dorsally and laterally. Tarsal claws with acute basal lobe.

Forewing shortened, slightly shorter than body, with dark brown veins, margin with cilia; radial cell absent, R+Sc, R1+Sc, M, M+Cu1, Cu1, Cu1a, 2r dark brown; R1 indistinct but visible, not reaching wing margin; Rs starting from 2r and visible for 1/4 of the distance between 2r and wing margin; areolet absent; M invisible; Rs+M indistinct, visible for half the distance between areolet and basalis, its projection reaching basalis at its lower-most point.

Metasoma 1.8x as long as head+mesosoma, longer than high in lateral view, smooth, glabrous; second metasomal tergum extending nearly 1/2 of metasoma length in dorsal view, smooth, glabrous, with white setae anterolaterally; subsequent terga and hypopygium smooth, glabrous; prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium as long as broad, spine gradually narrowing towards apex, with long setae extending far beyond apex of spine, forming a tuft. Body length 3.6 mm (n = 1).

Gall. ( Fig 209 ). Monolocular, wedge-shaped galls on the underside of leaves. The galls are up to 10 mm long, 5 mm wide and 3 mm thick, concave on the two broad sides, deeply grooved around the edge, nearly the color of the leaf, the flanges often reddish. The larval chamber is located transversely at the apex of the gall and a long cavity runs through the center of the gall from the chamber towards the pedicel ( Weld 1926).

Biology. Only the asexual generation is known, inducing galls on Q. chrysolepis . Mature galls are present in September, adults totally formed in November, overwintering in the galls, emerge next spring.

Distribution. USA: California ( Burks 1979).

Figures

FIGURES 196–201. Paracraspis insolens, comb. rev., asexual female. 196–199, head: 196, frontal view, 197, dorsal view, 198, lateral view, 199, posterior view. 200, antenna. 201, mesosoma and propleura, frontal view.

FIGURES 202–205. Paracraspis insolens, comb. rev., asexual female. 202, mesosoma, lateral view. 203, mesoscutum, dorsal view. 204, mesoscutellum, dorsal view. 205, metascutellum and propodeum, posterodorsal view.

FIGURES 206–207. Paracraspis insolens, comb. rev., asexual female. 206–207, metasoma: 206, lateral view, 207, ventral view.

FIGURES 208–209. Paracraspis asexual galls. 208, P. guadaloupensis, comb. rev.. 209, P. insolens, comb. rev.. Images courtesy of J. Gross.

FIGURES 216–219. Paracraspis patelloides, comb. rev., asexual female. 216, mesosoma, lateral view. 217, mesoscutum, dorsal view. 218, mesoscutellum, dorsal view. 219, metascutellum and propodeum, posterodorsal view.

FIGURES 210–215. Paracraspis patelloides, comb. rev., asexual female. 210–213, head: 210, frontal view, 211, dorsal view, 212, lateral view, 213, posterior view. 214, antenna. 215, mesosoma and propleura, frontal view.