Waxiella vuilleti (Marchal), 1909

Hodgson, Chris J. & Peronti, Ana L. B. G., 2012, 3372, Zootaxa 3372, pp. 1-265 : 222-225

Waxiella vuilleti (Marchal), 1909

( Figs 93, 100; Map fig. 105)

Ceroplastes vuilleti Marchal, 1909a: 68 ; 1909b: 165.

Waxiella vuilleti (Marchal) ; De Lotto, 1971: 148.

Material examined: Lectotype ♀ (here designated): Senegal: left label: Ceroplastes / vuilleti Marchal / on Ormosia laxiflora (looks like laviflora) / Badingo (Mt. Senegal): 1907 / I. Vuillet, coll. “co-type” (in red) // mounted by G. De Lotto, 1957; right label (in ink on glass): Ceroplastes vuilleti / Marchal, 1909 / Syntype / MNHN 5304-1 ( MNHN): 1/1 (good). Also a specimen in poor condition mounted on a wooden slide, labelled Ceroplastes vuilleti Marchal , sur kolo kolo (petit arbre de la f. de Leguminosae), Mt Senegal, Octobre 1907, Vuillet ( MNHN No. 5304-3). (Marchal (1909) adds the following data: kolo kolo = Ormosia laxiflora ; Badinko (cercle de Kita, chemin de fer de Kayes au Niger), Haut Sénégal, Octobre 1907).

Note. The following description has been made almost entirely from the lectotype slide remounted by De Lotto. See also Table 8.

Unmounted material. “The waxy test of this magnificent species averages 22 mm long by 17 mm wide; height 8–9 mm, but 15–17 mm when the depth of the wax extending down on each side of the branch is included. The wax test is extremely thick (6–7 mm), soft and easily depressed; colour white washed with rusty shades. When damaged, a colorless liquid is released with a characteristic odour. The wax test showed no indications of the structure of the underlying insect, which was quite small compared with the thickness of the test, averaging 6 mm long, 4–5 mm wide and 2 mm high. The insect was basically brown and hexagonally shaped. On either side, there are 2 lateral angles corresponding to the ends of spiracular furrows. From each of these angles emerges a straight line of clear white waxy filaments, quite different from the greyish-white wax of the test. Mid-dorsally, there is a longitudinal peak, ending abruptly anteriorly and slanting down posteriorly. Posteriorly is the anal process, truncated apically and strongly protruding, slightly tilted forward”. (Much shortened, rather free translation of Marchal, 1909b: 165).

Dorsum. Good specimen mature, 5.5 mm long, 4.0 mm wide. Derm membranous except for: (i) heavilysclerotised caudal process; (ii) lightly-sclerotised centres of each lateral and cephalic clear area, and (iii) a large oval, quite heavy area of sclerotisation in each stigmatic area, clearly larger than area of stigmatic setae but margin outside area of conical setae narrow; body margin not sclerotised. Derm probably with seven clear areas (that medially on dorsum apparently absent); no simple pores or dorsal setae noted in clear areas. Dorsal setae each quite long and sharply spinose, mainly straight, quite sharply pointed and narrowing slightly towards base; each 16–20 µm long; basal socket slightly wider than base of seta, each socket 6.5–7.0 µm wide; present sparsely throughout except in clear areas. Dorsal pores: loculate microducts of complex type, each 6–8 µm wide with 2–5 satellite loculi, with outer borders of pores broadly sclerotised; each pore with a very long inner filament, up to at least 130–140 µm long; simple microducts not detected. Preopercular pores: perhaps 20 present in a transverse band 2 or 3 pores wide. Anal plates each with only 1 basal socket for a large setae clearly visible on posterior half although plates heavily sclerotised; length of each plate 175 µm, width of both plates uncertain but about 155 µm.

Margin. Marginal setae strongly spinose, very similar to dorsal setae but perhaps slightly shorter and more curved, each 15–17 µm long; because of similarity to dorsal setae, frequency unknown; each anal lobe with 1 or 2 long setae, longest about 45 µm long. Stigmatic clefts fairly shallow, each with 2 types of stigmatic setae; (a) sharply-spinose setae on ventral surface associated with spiracular disc-pores, each 20–35 µm long, 8–10 µm wide at base; with about 40–70 in each cleft; and (b) roundly conical setae present in a large sclerotised oval to eggshaped area on dorsum (on available specimens, each group 625–825 wide and 825–1000 µm long); each cleft with about 400–500 conical setae; each group with 12–14 conical setae along basal margin, 60–70 conical setae around dorsal margin and with 31–35 conical setae across widest part of group (towards base of each group whereas widest part on W. egbara more dorsal); most conical setae about 10–15 µm long and about 8–9 µm wide at base, but generally with 1 larger, up to about 16 µm wide, placed rather centrally; sclerotised area of each group subequal to area of caudal process. Eyespots visible on 1 side only, width of lens about 40 µm.

Venter. Derm membranous apart from a heavily sclerotised crescent-shaped area along anterior margin of head. Pregenital disc-pores probably abundant around genital opening (segment VII) and across preceding 2 segments (but hidden under caudal process), plus a group of about 30 medially and 19 mediolaterally in IV, about 16 medially and 9–11 mediolaterally in III, plus 2 mediolaterally in segment II; absent on thorax and head. Spiracular disc-pores in quite narrow bands near spiracle, but about as wide as group of sharply-spinose stigmatic setae near margin, where disc-pores intermingle with spinose stigmatic setae; each band with about 120–150 pores; with a few disc-pores also extending medially past peritremes. Ventral microducts showing nothing distinctive. Ventral tubular ducts, each perhaps without an inner ductule, present in a group of probably about 200 in cephalic area anterior to antennae; none detected on abdomen (but medial areas of segments V–VIII not visible due to overlying caudal process). Submarginal setae setose, each about 18–20 µm long; other setae sparse.

Antennae each 8 segmented, each segment distinct; total length 540 µm. Clypeolabral shield about 275–285 µm long. Spiracles: width of anterior peritremes 145–165 µm; posterior 165–185 µm. Legs well developed, each with a strong tibio-tarsal articulatory sclerosis; each claw without a denticle; claw digitules both very broad and subequal to or slightly shorter than tarsal digitules; dimensions of metathoracic legs (µm): coxa 240–245; trochanter + femur 255–285, tibia 220–230, and tarsus 100–110; claw 45–48; setal distribution uncertain but perhaps with 9 setae on metatibia.

Discussion. The adult females of Waxiella vuilleti are extremely similar to those of W. egbara and W. mimosae but differ mainly in the much larger number of tubular ducts in the cephalic region (about 200 as compared with less than 100 on the other 2 species) and the very large size of each group of stigmatic setae (as large as or even larger than the sclerotised area of the caudal process – smaller on the other 2 species). On W. vuilleti , each group of conical stigmatic setae is roundly oval to egg-shaped (widest towards base of each group) with a very broad base; each group with about 12–15 conical setae across the basal width, about 60–70 conical setae around dorsal margin and some 30+ conical setae across the greatest width. In addition, the sharply-spinose stigmatic setae form a fairly narrow group across each stigmatic cleft, with 40+ setae in each group ( Table 8). All of these parameters are significantly greater than on most W. egbara .

Qin and Gullan (1995), in their morphological cladistic study of the wax scales insects, found only one difference in the characters scored between W. vuilleti and W. africana , W. mimosae and W. ugandae . The last species is here considered to be a synonym of W. egbara . All 4 species are accepted here as good species, as discussed under each species above and differ from W. vuilleti as outlined in the previous paragraph.

Marchal (1909b) states that some specimens appear to have 9-segmented antennae.

There are 2 poor slides of some specimens on pigeon pea in Nigeria in the BMNH labelled W. vuilleti and these were mentioned by Newstead (1917). Although they do have large groups of stigmatic setae, the groups are much smaller than the area of the caudal process and the number of tubular ducts in the head is less than 100 and so these specimens are here considered to be W. egbara . On this basis, W. vuilleti has only been collected once, in Senegal on Ormosia laxiflora (Fabaceae) .