Feron syndicorum Pujade-Villar & Cuesta-Porta, 2023

Cuesta-Porta, Victor, Melika, George, Nicholls, James A., Stone, Graham N. & Pujade-Villar, Juli, 2023, Re-establishment of the Nearctic oak cynipid gall wasp genus Feron Kinsey, 1937 (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Cynipini), including the description of six new species, Zootaxa 5366 (1), pp. 1-174 : 131-134

Feron syndicorum Pujade-Villar & Cuesta-Porta , sp. nov.

Figs 384–394

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:693BC07D-2CAB-4B81-869D-27ABEDE48D87

Type material. HOLOTYPE, asexual female “ Mexico ( Code 077), La Cumbre (Monte Escobedo, ZAC), 22º19’8.9’’N 103º38’53,42’’W, ex Q. potosina Humb. & Bonpl Trell. , (05, 11.2010) 15.12.2010, leg. C. Carrillo, O. Cabral, R. Treto & L. Landa ” deposited in UB . PARATYPES (5 asexual females) labeled as the holotype. Two paratypes deposited in UB , and three paratypes in PHDNRL .

Etymology: Syndicus is the Latinization of the Greek σύνδικος (σύν = with and δίκη = justice), which means one who acts with justice. We use the plural because it is dedicated to the 5 ‘sindics’ of October 1, 2017: Marc Marsal i Ferret (lawyer, he was a consultant to the Online University of Catalonia, UOC), Josep Pagès i Masó (Autonomous University of Bellaterra, UAB), Jordi Matas i Dalmases (Barcelona University, UB), Tània Verge i Mestre (Pompeu Fabra University, UPF) and Marta Alsina Conesa (lawyer, currently defender of the citizens of Girona). To them all for their commitment to democracy.

Diagnosis. Asexual females are part of the group of Feron species that are characterised by the body never being black; head trapezoid in frontal view; ocelli are not elevated above the frons; inner margins of eyes parallel or converging very slightly ventrally, the transfacial distance is longer than the height of eye; antenna with 12 flagellomeres, sometimes suture between F11 and F12 incomplete; toruli are located above the mid-height of eyes; the eye is less than 3.0× as high as the length of the malar space; the pronotum laterally with longitudinal carinae; the mesoscutum alutaceous to coriaceous, rugose-reticulate, reticulate, without distinct piliferous points; and the mesopleuron with a transversal striate band; as in F. gigas (asex), F. parmula (asex), F. stellulum and some specimens of F. tibiale (asex). Differs from F. gigas , F. parmula , and F. stellulum in having the gena broadened behind the eye. The most similar species is the asexual form of F. tibiale but in F. syndicorum the mesoscutum is finely alutaceous; the notaulus is complete but shallow and alutaceous at least on anterior 3/4 of its length; the mesoscutellar disk is strongly curved in lateral view, which makes the mesoscutum and mesoscutellum appear as two independent lobes in lateral view; and the subaxillular bar reaches 1/3 of the height of mesoscutellum. Feron tibiale (part) is coarsely reticulated on the mesoscutum, has complete notaulus but which is inconspicuous on anterior 1/4 of its length; the mesoscutellum is flat in lateral view and forms a continuous curve with the mesoscutum in lateral view; and the subaxillular bar reaches half the height of metascutellum.

Description. Asexual female ( Figs 384–393 ). Head, mesosoma, metasoma light brown to reddish brown; antennae slightly darker distally.

Head trapezoid in frontal view, broadest part on the level of half height of eye; with sparse setae, denser on lower face; 2.0× as broad as long in dorsal view. Gena alutaceous broadened behind eye in frontal view, subequal to transverse diameter of eye in lateral view. Malar space with a few delicate striae radiating from clypeus and reaching eye; eye 2.6× as high as length of malar space. Inner margins of eyes parallel. POL 1.5× as long as OOL, OOL 2.0× as long as diameter of lateral ocellus and 1.3× as long as LOL, all ocelli ovate, of same size. Transfacial distance 1.1x as long as height of eye; toruli located slightly above mid height of head, frons shorter than height of lower face, diameter of antennal torulus 1.5× as long as distance between them, distance between torulus and eye 1.5× as long as diameter of torulus; lower face smooth, with dense white setae; slightly elevated median area alutaceous, with a few setae. Clypeus trapezoid, broader than high, alutaceous, with a few long setae along ventral edge; ventrally rounded, not emarginate and without median incision; anterior tentorial pit rounded, distinct, epistomal sulcus distinct, clypeo-pleurostomal line well impressed. Frons uniformly alutaceous-reticulate, without striae and with a few setae, areas between toruli and between torulus and eye also alutaceous; interocellar area alutaceous-reticulate. Vertex, occiput, postgena alutaceous, with white long setae; postocciput alutaceous-reticulate, with concentric lines around occipital foramen and postgenal bridge; posterior tentorial pit large, elongated, area below impressed; occipital foramen as high as height of postgenal bridge; hypostomal carina emarginate, continuing into postgenal sulci which diverge strongly toward occipital foramen, postgenal bridge anteriorly slightly broader than occipital foramen. Antenna longer than head+mesosoma, with 11 flagellomeres (some specimens with 12 flagellomeres with a distinct suture between F12 and F11), F6 until F11–F12 gradually broadening towards apical end, pedicel slightly longer than broad; F1 1.5× as long as pedicel and 1.5× as long as F2; F2=F3=F4, F5 to F10 nearly equal in length, F11 longer than F10; placodeal sensilla on F5–F11.

Mesosoma 1.2× as long as high, with sparse white setae, except dense setae on lateral propodeal area. Pronotum delicately striate, with sparse setae; propleuron alutaceous, glabrous. Mesoscutum alutaceous to reticulate, with shallow piliferous points, smooth along parapsidal lines with sparse white setae, slightly longer than broad (greatest width measured across mesoscutum level with base of tegulae). Notaulus complete, shallow, bottom smooth on posterior 1/4 of its length and alutaceous-reticulate on the anterior 3/4, posteriorly slightly broader and slightly converging; at posterior end the distance between notauli shorter than distance between notaulus and side of mesoscutum; anterior parallel line distinct, in the form of a bare, smooth stripe, extending to half-length of mesoscutum; parapsidal line distinct, marked with broad impressed smooth glabrous stripes; median mesoscutal line absent; parascutal carina broad, reaching notaulus. Mesoscutellum ovate, slightly broader than long, circumscutelar carina absent; disk of mesoscutellum alutaceous, dull rugose laterally and posteriorly, overhanging metanotum, with dense setae. Mesoscutellar foveae oblique, inconspicuously divided by an alutaceous central elevated area; foveae with smooth, glabrous bottom, occupying at least 1/3 of mesoscutellum length. Mesopleuron delicately striate and glabrous, posterior margin smooth; with setae in ventral part; mesopleural triangle smooth, with numerous short white setae; dorsal and lateral axillar areas smooth, with dense white setae; subaxillular bar smooth, glabrous, triangular, as high as 1/3 of height of metascutellum; metapleural sulcus reaching mesopleuron at half of its height, upper part of sulcus present, lower part of sulcus separating smooth, glabrous area, with dense setae. Metascutellum alutaceous to smooth, glabrous, 3.0× as high as height of smooth, glabrous ventral impressed area; metanotal trough smooth, with some setae; central propodeal area lyre-shaped, glabrous, with irregular interrupted rugae at the base in large specimens; lateral propodeal carinae distinct, bent outwards in posterior 1/3; lateral propodeal area smooth, with long dense white setae. Nucha with numerous sulci dorsally and laterally. Tarsal claws with basal lobe.

Fore wing longer than body, hyaline, with distinct dense cilia on margin, veins dark brown, radial cell open, 3.9× as long as broad; R1 and Rs not reaching wing margin; areolet small, triangular, almost indistinct. Rs+M distinct, not reaching basalis, its projection reaching basalis slightly above mid height.

Metasoma as long as head+mesosoma, higher than long than in lateral view; 2nd metasomal tergum extending to 2/3 of metasoma length in dorsal view, with short white setae anterolaterally, without micropunctures; subsequent terga and hypopygium smooth, glabrous, with micropunctures. Prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium 4.8× as long as broad in ventral view, with some short setae ventrally which not extend beyond apex of spine.

Body length 2.1–2.2 mm (n = 2).

Gall ( Fig. 394 ). Yellow crystalline leaf gall mass (aggregation of galls, 5-20 galls) on underside of leaf, to 20 mm long projecting from leaf by up to 15 mm. Larval chambers easily detachable from leaf and crystalline pubescence extremely brittle.

Biology. Only the asexual generation is known, which induces galls on Q. potosina (section Quercu s, subsection Leucomexicana). The gall matures in late autumn and the adults emerge soon after.

Distribution. Mexico, La Cumbre (Monte Escobedo, State of Zacatecas).

Figures

FIGURES 384–388. Feron syndicorum, sp. nov., asexual female. 384–387, head: 384, frontal view, 385, posterior view, 386, dorsal view, 387, lateral view. 388, antenna.

FIGURES 389–392. Feron syndicorum, sp. nov., asexual female. 389, mesosoma, lateral view. 390, mesoscutum, dorsal view. 391, mesoscutellum, dorsal view. 392, metascutellum and propodeum, posterodorsal view.

FIGURES 393–394. Feron syndicorum, sp. nov., asexual generation. 392–393, asexual female: 392, fore wing, part, 393, metasoma, lateral view. 394, galls.