Pristiphora omalos, Liston, 2023

Liston, Andrew, 2023, Taxonomy, distribution and host plants of some southern European and North African Sawflies (Hymenoptera, Symphyta), Contributions to Entomology 73 (1), pp. 9-30 : 9

Pristiphora omalos sp. nov.

Figs 4 , 5A

Pristiphora sp. [ Pristiphora subbifida group]: Liston et al. 2015.

Type locality.

Greece, Crete, Chania Prefecture, Omalos Plateau, 35.322°N, 23.913°E, approximately 1100 m above sea-level. Open stand of Acer sempervirens and Zelkova abelicea with regeneration on foot of west-facing hill slope. Collection data: 21.04.2013, by sweeping, A. Liston & M. Prous leg.

Type specimen.

Holotype ♂ (DEI-GISHym20661), pinned, with genitalia gummed to a card below specimen. Labels: "Greece, Crete, Omalos 35.322°N, 23.913°E alt. 1100 m 21-IV-2013 A. Liston & M. Prous leg." [Chania Prefecture, Omalos Plateau], “DEI-GISHym20661”, "Holotype Pristiphora omalos sp. n. ♂ det. A. Liston 2023" [red], deposited in the SDEI.

Description.

Head (Fig. 4C, D ) black. Mouthparts partly dark brown. Outer orbits narrowly pale (orange-brown). Antennal flagellum slightly brown ventrally towards tip (Fig. 4G ). Thorax black (Fig. 4B, E, F ); cenchri pale. Legs pale; coxae black except distal parts; small black markings on trochanters, trochantelli, and bases of fore- and mid-femora (Fig. 4B, F, H ). Tip of metabasitarsus and following tarsomeres slightly darkened (Fig. 4H ). Wing veins including forewing costa and stigma dark brown (Fig. 4A ). Abdomen (Fig. 4A, J ) yellow-orange; tergum 1 and base of tergum 2 medially black; cerci brown.

Antenna (Fig. 4G ) longer than fore wing costa (1.2:1.0). Antennomere 3 about 3.4 × as long as apical width; relative lengths of antennomeres 3-9 as 100: 90: 84: 74: 65: 62: 58. Inner tooth of claw about half as long as outer tooth (Fig. 4I ). Abdominal terga finely reticulately sculptured. Abdominal tergum 8 basally carinate; procidentia raised, subtriangular (Fig. 4J ). Penis valve (Fig. 5A ): valvispina medially thickened and not strongly upcurved; apex of valviceps narrows distally from base of valvispina.

Length: 4.5 mm.

Female. Unknown.

Etymology.

the species name is a noun in the nominative singular; the name of the plateau on which the holotype was collected.

Host plant.

the holotype was collected, together with specimens of Pristiphora cretica Schedl, 1981 and P. tetrica (Zaddach [in Brischke], 1883), by sweeping Acer sempervirens growing mixed with Zelkova abelicea . Probably A. sempervirens is the host, be-cause all hosts so far recorded for the Pristiphora depressa group are Acer spp. and this is the only Acer species occurring in Crete.

Genetic data.

the COI barcode sequence of the P. omalos holotype diverges by about 4.8% from its nearest neighbour, P. tetrica from Sicily (DEI--GISHym10972). Divergence from two Cretan P. tetrica is approximately 5.3% and from P. schedli Liston & Späth, 2008 (Cyprus) approximately 8.6%.

Diagnosis.

in the key to West Palaearctic species of the Pristiphora depressa group by Liston and Prous (2020), P. omalos sp. nov. runs to P. tetrica . Externally, the only clear difference is that most of the metabasitarsus and the tip of the metatibia are pale in P. omalos , but black-marked in P. tetrica . However, the penis valve of P. tetrica (Fig. 5B ) is very different from that of P. omalos (Fig. 5A ), both in the shape of the valviceps and the valvispina. In P. tetrica and other Pristiphora depressa group species, apart from P. omalos and P. schedli , the valvispina is not medially thickened, and is usually more strongly upcurved. Although the penis valve of P. omalos resembles that of P. schedli (Fig. 5C ) in the shape of the valvispina, the valviceps is very differently shaped. Also similar to P. schedli is the small inner tooth of the claw of P. omalos : the claw of all other West Palaearctic species of the Pristiphora depressa group is bifid or subbifid. Differences in colour pattern between P. schedli and P. omalos may also be significant: the clypeus, labrum and pronotum of P. schedli are largely pale (dark brown or black in P. omalos ), and the abdominal terga of P. schedli males bear several medial black markings, at least on terga 1-3 and 7-8 (only terga 1 and 2 black-marked in P. omalos ), and the metatarsus and tip of metatibia are extensively black (metabasitarsus largely pale and metatibia completely pale in P. omalos ). While P. tetrica has a wide West Palaearctic distribution, P. schedli has not yet been recorded outside Cyprus.

Figures

Figure 4. Pristiphora omalos sp. nov. holotype ♂ (DEI-GISHym 20661): A, B. Complete; C, D. Head; E. Thorax dorsal; F. Head and thorax ventral; G. Antenna; H. Metatarsus and tip of metatibia; I. Metatarsal claw; J. Abdomen dorsal. Scale bar: 1 mm.

Figure 5. Pristiphora depressa species group penis valves. A. P. omalos sp. nov. Holotype (DEI-GISHym 20661); B. P. tetrica (DEI-GISHym 21204); C. P. schedli (DEI-GISHym 5036).