Feron parmula ( Bassett, 1900 ) Cuesta-Porta & Melika & Nicholls & Stone & Pujade-Villar, 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 : 90-94

Feron parmula ( Bassett, 1900) , comb. nov.

Figs 256–268

Andricus parmula Bassett, 1900: 312 , female, gall.

Dryophanta discus Bassett, 1900: 326 , female, gall. Synonym in Weld (1951: 635)

Type material. Andricus parmula Bassett : Type No 10500, asexual female, deposited at the Entomology Type Collection at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, not examined by the authors .

Additional material. 25 asexual females, all from California: 2 females “ USA, California, Hastings Reserve , Q. lobata , leg. Challis, 2004.10.23.” ; 10 females “ USA, California, Clearlake , Q. lobata, CA 8, galltype 159; leg. J.A. Nicholls, 2007.11.03.” ; 2 females “ USA, California, Copperopolis , Q. douglasii, CA 907, galltype 159; leg. J.A. Nicholls, 2007.11.06.” ; 11 females “ USA, California, Cosumnes River Preserve, Q. lobata, CA 990, galltype 159; leg. J.A. Nicholls, 2007.11.07.”

Diagnosis. Asexual females belong to the group of Feron species in which the body is never black; the head is rounded or trapezoid to triangular in frontal view, ocelli are not elevated above the frons; inner margins of eyes are parallel or very slightly converging ventrally, the transfacial distance is equal to or longer than the height of eye; toruli are located above mid-height of eyes; the eye is less than 3.0× as high as length of the malar space; lateral ocelli smaller, OOL at least 2.5× as long as the diameter of ocellus, if shorter then the head and mesosoma are not yellowish or light brown; the pronotum laterally with longitudinal carinae; the mesoscutum alutaceous to coriaceous, rugose-reticulate, reticulate, without piliferous points and the mesopleuron with transverse reliculate-carinate band at mid-height; as in F. gigas (asex), F. tibiale (asex), F. stellulum (asex), and F. syndicorum (asex). Differs from F. tibiale and F. syndicorum in the gena which is not broadened behind the eye in frontal view, 2nd metasomal tergum with a band of micropunctures posteriorly and all subsequent terga with micropunctures. Differs from F. gigas and F. stellulum in that the malar space is without striae, mesoscutellar foveae absent or slightly impressed and the prominent part of the ventral spine of the hypopygium 7.0× as long as broad in ventral view; see more characters at couplet 37 in the key.

Re-description. Asexual female ( Figs 256–267 ). Head, antenna, mesosoma, legs, metasoma uniformly light brown. Veins pale.

Head alutaceous-reticulate, with sparse setae on lower face, postgena, slighly higher than broad and as broad as mesosoma in frontal view; 2.0× as broad as long in dorsal view. Gena alutaceous-reticulate, not broadened behind eye in frontal view; gena in lateral view 2.0× narrower than transverse diameter of eye. Malar space delicately coriaceous, without striae, malar sulcus absent; eye 2.1× as high as length of malar space. Inner margins of eyes slightly converging ventrally. POL 2.3× as long as OOL, OOL 2.1× as long as diameter of lateral ocellus and slightly shorter than LOL, all ocelli ovate, of same size. Antennal toruli located above mid-height of eyes. Transfacial distance 1.4× as long as height of eye; toruli located 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 delicately coriaceous, without setae; slightly elevated median area and area between toruli delicately coriaceous, with a few setae. Clypeus impressed, flat, rectangular, broader than high, smooth, with few long setae along ventral edge; ventrally rounded, not emarginate and without median incision; anterior tentorial pit rounded, distinct, small; epistomal sulcus distinct, clypeo-pleurostomal line well impressed. Frons, interocellar area, vertex and occiput uniformly alutaceous-reticulate, without striae and setae; postocciput and postgena glabrous, with very delicate, indistinct concentric lines around and laterad to occipital foramen and postgenal bridge; posterior tentorial pit large, elongated, area below impressed; occipital foramen shorter than 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 slightly shorter than body, with 12 flagellomeres, pedicel subglobose, slightly longer than broad; flagellomeres subsequently broadening towards apical end; F1 1.4× as long as F2 and 1.8× as long as pedicel; F2=F3=F4, F5=F6, F7 to F11 equal in length; F12 slightly longer than F11; placodeal sensilla on F4–F12.

Mesosoma nearly as long as high, without setae. Pronotum delicately coriaceous, with delicate striae, glabrous laterally; propleuron smooth, with sparse short setae. Mesoscutum uniformly reticulate, slightly longer than broad (greatest width measured across mesoscutum level with base of tegulae). Notaulus complete, indistinct in anterior 1/4 of mesoscutum length, distinctly impressed along remainder of mesoscutum; posteriorly converging; at posterior end the distance between notauli shorter than distance between notaulus and side of mesoscutum; anterior parallel line indistinct, impressed narrow stripes extending to 1/3 of mesoscutum length; parapsidal line marked with indistinct, narrow smooth, impressed area; median mesoscutal line absent; parascutal carina broad, reaching notaulus. Mesoscutellum elongated, longer than broad, broadest part in posterior 1/4 of its length; disk of mesoscutellum rugose, dull rugose laterally and posteriorly, overhanging metanotum, with sparse setae. Mesoscutellar foveae absent, slightly impressed anterior part delicately coriaceous like rest of disk, without central carina. Mesopleuron indistinctly delicately coriaceous, with stronger coriaceous sculpture in central transverse band extending across mesopleuron at mid height; speculum and ventral half of mesopleuron smooth, glabrous, without transverse longitudinal striae; mesopleural triangle smooth, with a few white setae; dorsal and lateral axillar areas smooth, with a few white setae; axillula with delicate parallel longitudinal striae; subaxillular bar smooth, glabrous, with subparallel sides, posteriorly as high as height of metanotal trough; metapleural sulcus reaching mesopleuron at half of its height; upper part of sulcus indistinct; lower part of sulcus delimiting smooth area with dense long white setae. Metascutellum smooth, glabrous, shorter than height of smooth, glabrous ventral impressed area; metanotal trough smooth, glabrous, without setae; central propodeal area lyre-shaped, smooth, glabrous, without rugae; lateral propodeal carinae distinct, bent outwards in posterior 1/3 of its height; lateral propodeal area smooth, with long dense white setae. Nucha with numerous sulci laterally, smooth glabrous dorsally. Tarsal claws with basal lobe.

Fore wing longer than body, hyaline, with long dense cilia on margin, veins light brown, radial cell open, 4.2× as long as broad; Rs and R1 nearly reaching wing margin; areolet indistinct, hardly traceable or not. Rs+M indistinct, its projection reaching basalis below half of its height.

Metasoma longer than head+mesosoma, slightly longer than high in lateral view; 2nd metasomal tergum extending to 2/3 length of metasoma in dorsal view, with numerous white setae anterolaterally, with band of micropunctures posteriorly; all subsequent terga with micropunctures. Hypopygium without micropunctures, prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium 7.0× as long as broad in ventral view, with few setae ventrally.

Body length 1.5–1.7 mm (n = 10).

Gall ( Fig. 268 ). Minute, flat, sessile, saucer shaped, red spangle gall, on the underside of the leaves, 2.0 mm in diameter, with a slight elevation in the center, where the small larval cell is located ( Russo 2006, 2021).

Biology. Only the asexual generation is known, which induces galls on Q. douglasii , Q. dumosa , Q. garryana , Q. lobata (section Quercus , subsection Dumosae), and Q. engelmannii (section Quercus , subsection Leucomexicana) ( Burks 1979). Galls mature in April, adults emerge after soon ( Russo 2006, 2021).

Distribution. USA: California ( Burks 1979).

Figures

FIGURES 256–261. Feron parmula, comb. nov., asexual female. 256–259, head: 256, frontal view, 257, dorsal view, 258, lateral view, 259, posterior view. 260, antenna. 261, propleura, frontal view.

FIGURES 262–265. Feron parmula, comb. nov., asexual female. 262, mesosoma, lateral view. 263, mesoscutum, dorsal view. 264, mesoscutellum, dorsal view. 265, metascutellum and propodeum, posterodorsal view.

FIGURES 266–268. Feron parmula, comb. nov., asexual generation. 266–267, asexual female: 266, fore wing, 267, metasoma, lateral view. 268, galls.