Cycloneuroterus jianwui Tang & Melika

Tang, Chang-Ti, Sinclair, Frazer, Hearn, Jack, Yang, Man-Miao, Stone, Graham N., Nicholls, James A., Schwéger, Szabina & Melika, George, 2016, Eight new species of Cycloneuroterus Melika & Tang gallwasps from Taiwan and mainland China (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Cynipini), Zootaxa 4088 (4), pp. 451-488 : 473-476

Cycloneuroterus jianwui Tang & Melika , new species

Figs 5–6 , 85–98

Type material. HOLOTYPE female: CHINA: Yunnan Prov., Lan Cang Co., Mt. Xinghou 3, ex Quercus sp.3, 12.IV.2011 (CHI68), 22.073200ºN, 100.184450ºE, 1329m, ex young leaves binding together like candyfloss (AGWP-Morpho83), adult em. 14.IV.2011, leg. C.T. Tang, F. Sinclair, J. Hearn. Two female and 4 male PARATYPES with the same labels as the holotype.

The female holotype and 2 male paratypes are deposited in NMNS, 2 female and 2 male paratypes in PHMB.

Etymology. The species is named in honour of Mr. Jian-Wu Lee (Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Yunnan, China), who was our guide during the collecting trip in China.

Diagnosis. Cycloneuroterus jianwui females closely resembles C. akagashiphilus , C. lohsei , and C. longinuxus by the black or dark brown metasoma, however, in C. jianwui is 2.62:2:1 ( Fig. 86 ), in C. lohsei POL:OOL:LOL = 2.6:2.6:1 ( Fig. 100 ), while in C. longinuxus is 2.33:2.56:1, and in C. akagashiphilus is 2.3:2.2:1. In C. jianwui female the head is uniformly light brown, while in the male the frons, interocellar area, and occiput are darker ( Figs 85–90 ). In Cycloneuroterus lohsei female the head is dark brown to black with lighter lower face, gena, postgena, and mouth parts, while the male head is uniformly yellow, with darker interocellar area ( Figs 99– 101, 102–103 ). In C. akagashiphilus and C. longinuxus male and female the head is dark brown to black, with lighter lower face, clypeus, gena, and mouthparts. In C. lohsei the mesopleuron is light brown ( Fig. 107 ), while C. longinuxus , C. jianwui , and C. akagashiphilus the mesopleuron is uniformly yellow ( Fig. 93 ).

Description. SEXUAL FEMALE. Head reddish brown; mandibles, mouthparts, labial and maxillary palps reddish brown; scape, pedicel, F1 and F2 reddish brown, rest flagellomeres progressively darker till last one; mesosoma reddish brown, mesoscutum partially dark brown; metasoma black to dark brown; legs yellowish.

Head 1.9× as broad as long in dorsal view, 1.2× as broad as high in frontal view, slightly narrower than mesosoma. Gena delicately alutaceous, not broadened behind eye, 0.42× as broad as cross diameter of eye; malar space alutaceous, without striae, 0.34× as long as height of eye. Eyes parallel. POL 1.3× as long as OOL; OOL 1.8× as long as diameter of lateral ocellus and 2.0× as long as LOL; all ocelli ovate, elongated, same size and shape. Transfacial distance only 1.2× as long as height of eye; diameter of torulus 1.2× as long as distance between toruli, distance between torulus and eye equal to diameter of torulus; lower face alutaceous, with dense white setae and piliferous points; median elevated area narrow, delicately coriaceous. Clypeus not elevated above lower face, quadrangular, flat, alutaceous, glabrous; ventrally emarginate, with median incision; anterior tentorial pit small, distinct, epistomal sulcus and clypeo-pleurostomal line distinct, deep. Frons and interocellar area delicately uniformly coriaceous, without setae. Vertex and occiput delicately alutaceous, with several rows of white setae. Postocciput and postgena smooth, glabrous, postgena with dense white setae; posterior tentorial pit large, ovate, deep, area below not impressed; height of postgenal bridge shorter than occipital foramen and 0.38 as high as oral foramen. Antenna with 12 flagellomeres, longer than head+mesosoma; pedicel longer than broad; F 1 1.06 × as long as F2, 2.4× as long as pedicel; F3–F11 progressively shorter; F 12 1.4 × as long as F11; placoid sensillae on all flagellomeres.

Mesosoma longer than high in lateral view. Pronotum smooth, glabrous, short dorsally, without parallel striae laterally, with few white setae; strongly impressed along anterior rim; propleuron alutaceous, glabrous, with smooth central area. Mesoscutum smooth, glabrous, without setae; 0.8× as broad as long (largest width measured across mesoscutum on the level of the base of tegulae). Notaulus, anterior parallel, parapsidal and median mesoscutal lines absent; parascutal carina broad, extending to the point where notaulus reaches pronotum. Mesoscutellum ovate, longer than broad, broadest in middle, smooth, glabrous, with few setae, foveolate along lateral and posterior margins, slightly overhanging metanotum. Scutellar foveae absent, semilunar transverse depression present anteriorly, with smooth glabrous bottom. Mesopleuron and speculum smooth, glabrous, without setae, impressed along acetabular carina; mesopleural triangle alutaceous. Dorsoaxillar area smooth, with few white setae; lateroaxillar area smooth, without setae. Subaxillular bar smooth, glabrous; metapleural sulcus reaches posterior margin of mesopectus in upper 1/3 of its height. Metascutellum uniformly coriaceous, metanotal trough smooth, glabrous, with few short white setae; ventral impressed area narrower than height of metascutellum, smooth, without striae; central propodeal area broad, smooth, glabrous, with few delicate irregular rugae; lateral propodeal carina strong, high, strongly curved outwards in middle height; lateral propodeal area smooth, glabrous with few setae and piliferous points. Nucha without irregular rugae.

Radial cell of fore wing 4.3× as long as broad; Rs+M distinct along entire length, reaches basalis at lower 1/3 of its height. Areolet large, triangular, distinct; wing margin with long cilia; Rs and R1 reach wing margin.

Metasoma shorter than head+mesosoma, as high as long in lateral view; second metasomal tergite occupying nearly half of metasoma length in dorsal view, with few white setae laterally, all subsequent tergites without setae, smooth, glabrous. Ventral spine of hypopygium short, prominent part 1.72× as long as broad in ventral view, with sparse, white subapical setae, extending beyond apex of spine. Body length 1.7–1.8 mm (n = 3).

MALE. Similar to female but body slightly lighter, legs dirty yellowish, frons and interocellar area dark brown. Antenna with 13 flagellomeres, slightly longer than body; F1 curved and swollen apically, equal to F2, 2.7× as long as pedicel; F13 nearly equal in length to F12; placoid sensilla on all flagellomeres. Body length 1.7–1.8 mm (n = 2).

Gall ( Fig. 98 ). Galls are multilocular, the gall growth causes great distortion to young leaves; those leaves usually occur on the tip of twigs. Galls are surrounded by pink hairs similar to candyfloss. Galls are 2.0– 2.5 cm in diameter and 1.5–2.0 cm in height.

Biology. Galls appear on the host-plant during the period of active sprouting. Adults emerged from galls immediately after field collection in April. We were unable to identify the host plant species except to the level of Quercus subgenus Cyclobalanopsis .

Distribution. Currently known only from China: Yunnan Province, Lan Cang Co., Mt. Xinghou.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 8. Colour patterns in Cycloneuroterus species. 1 – 2, C. abei new species: 1, female, 2, male. 3 – 4, C. ergei new species: 3, female, 4, male. 5 – 6, C. jianwui new species: 5, female, 6, male. 7 – 8, C. lilungi Tang, Melika & Yang: 7, female, 8, male.

FIGURES 85 – 92. Cycloneuroterus jianwui, new species. 85 – 87, head, female: 85, frontal view, 86, dorsal view, 87, posterior view. 88 – 90, head, male: 88, frontal view, 89, dorsal view, 90, posterior view. 91 – 92, antenna: 91, female, 92, male.

FIGURES 93 – 98. Cycloneuroterus jianwui, new species. 93 – 97, female: 93, mesosoma, lateral view, 94, mesosoma, dorsal view, 95, metascutellum and propodeum, posterodorsal view, 96, metasoma, lateral view, 97, fore wing, part. 98, gall (photo by C. - T. Tang).

FIGURES 99 – 106. Cycloneuroterus lohsei, new species. 99 – 101, head, female: 99, frontal view, 100, dorsal view, 101, posterior view. 102 – 103, head, male: 102, frontal view, 103, dorsal view. 104 – 105, antenna: 104, female, 105, male. 106, mesosoma, dorsal view, female.

FIGURES 107 – 110. Cycloneuroterus lohsei, new species, female. 107, mesosoma, lateral view, 108, pronotum and propleura, frontal view, 109, metascutellum and propodeum, posterodorsal view, 110, metasoma, lateral view.