Cornegenapsylla allophyli Malenovský and Percy, sp. nov.

(Figures 3B; 5A,D,E; 6A – L; 7A – D)

Adult colour (ethanol material)

Forewing membrane (Figure 6A) clear except for brown infuscations along the veins; veins brown in basal wing half, light ochreous in apical half. Hindwing membrane infuscate basally (Figure 6A). Body almost uniformly brown, legs paler. Antenna (Figure 6E) with segments 1 – 3 brown, segment 4 uniformly off- white, segments 5 – 8 off- white basally and dark brown to black apically, segments 9 – 10 entirely dark brown to black.

Adult structure

Forewing (Figure 6A) with apex broadly truncate; cell cu1 small; membrane lacking surface spinules, but with small patches of radular spines close to veins at the margin. Head distinctly wider than thorax. Vertex (Figure 6G) almost flat dorsally, with lateral ocelli lying on small tubercles, rounded down to frons; medial epicranial suture distinct anteriorly and posteriorly, but indistinct medially. Genae very small, weakly swollen, with a small tubercle below insertion of antennae (Figure 6G). Antenna (Figure 6E) relatively long; the 3rd segment strikingly enlarged, approximately as long as segments 4 and 5 together; segments 4 – 10 slender; segments 4 – 9 each with widely elliptic rhinarium largely bordered with wreath of small, acute cuticular spines, segments 4 – 8 each with an additional sensilla lying in a transverse groove closely adjacent to rhinarium (Figure 6F); terminal setae subequal, slightly shorter than segments 9 and 10 together (Figure 6E). Clypeus (Figure 6D) somewhat flattened, rounded at apex, lacking long setae. Apical segment of proboscis short. Metatibia with a small genual spine basally, and 13 – 15 evenly sized unsclerotized spurs apically; metabasitarsus slightly longer than apical tarsal segment and bearing two sclerotized lateral spurs (Figure 6B). Male subgenital plate elongate, strongly produced into a posterior hump (Figure 6H). Male proctiger (Figure 6H) narrowly conical. Paramere (Figure 6I) curved posteriorly, with apex broadly rounded; inner side covered with fine setae. Distal segment of aedeagus (Figure 6J) with a rounded, unhooked apex. Female terminalia (Figure 6K) long; proctiger with dorsal margin nearly straight; circumanal ring relatively small, 0.2 × length of proctiger, and composed of a double row of cells; subgenital plate gradually narrowing to a pointed apex; inner ovipositor valve dorsally broadly triangular in profile (Figure 4L).

Adult measurements (mm) and ratios (3 ♂, 2 ♀)

WL: 1.72 – 2.16; HW: 0.51 – 0.61; AL: 1.13 – 1.30; GP: 0.03 – 0.06; PB: 0.09; HVW: 1.82 – 20; ALHW: 2.05 – 2.17; VLGP: 3.50 – 70; VLW: 0.64 – 0.70; WLW: 2.20 – 2.29; CUR: 2.83 – 30; MR: 0.55 – 0.63; TLFL: 1.11 – 1.18. ♂: MP: 0.16 – 0.21; PL: 0.16 – 0.18; AEL: 0.19 – 0.21; MSLH: 1.58 –

1.77; AHS: 2.36 – 2.40; PLSH: 0.91 – 0.92. ♀: FP: 0.62 – 0.74; FSP: 0.47 – 0.54; RL: 0.14; OV: 0.19; FPRL: 4.53; FPHW: 1.02 – 1.25; FPFSP: 1.31.

Immature structure

Body outline elongate, with protruding wing buds lacking humeral lobes (Figure 7A, D). Antennae of 5th instar (Figure 7B) with 8 or 9 segments bearing four rhinaria, one each apically on segments 6 – 9; 3rd instar antennae 5- to 6-segmented bearing three rhinaria, one each on terminal 3 segments. Tarsi with well-developed claws, arolia very small (Figure 7B). Anus situated terminally, circumanal pore area with large and irregular lateral fields of multiple pores extending to both ventral and dorsal surfaces; circumanal ring medially narrow with a single row of elongate cells (Figure 7C).

Immature chaetotaxy

Immatures with sparse coverage of short simple setae on body dorsal surface and margins. Dorsal surface of caudal plate/abdominal tergites with small groups of pointed lanceolate setae close to the body margin (Figure 7A, D).

Immature measurements (mm), 5th instar (n = 2)

BL: 2.09 – 2.24; BW: 1.21 – 1.30; WL: 0.67; CPL: 1.06 – 1.24; CPW: 0.94 – 0.97; RW: 0.32 – 0.37; HW: 0.62 – 0.63; AL: 0.42 – 0.46.

Egg

Stout laterally positioned pedicel at base, apical tail present (Figure 7B: dissected from 5th instar immatures).

Host plant

Allophylus cobbe (= Pometia pinnata) ( Sapindaceae).

Distribution

PNG, Madang Province.

Biology

The gall is a leaf fold on the margin of the leaf and consists of the lower abaxial surface folding up over the upper adaxial surface to make the gall on the upper leaf surface (Figure 3B).

Etymology

A noun in the genitive case, named in reference to the host plant genus Allophylus .

Comments

This species is placed in the hitherto monotypic genus, Cornegenapsylla Yang and Li, 1982 . It shares with the type species, C. sinica, the forewing pattern with bands of dark pigmentation around the veins, the forewing shape (the forewing being elongate with an almost rectangular apex), and the head shape, though it lacks the well-developed genal processes of C. sinica (comparison of forewing, head and male terminalia are provided in Figure 5A – F). It differs most distinctly from C. sinica in the larger body size, the very short genal processes, the swollen 3rd antennal segment, the male subgenital plate produced into a posterior bulge, the elongate shape of the female terminalia, the immature morphology, and the host plant species and galling biology. Both species produce galls on host plants in the family Sapindaceae, but C. sinica immatures produce deep pit galls on young leaves of Dimocarpus longan (Yang 1984), whereas C. allophyli immatures produce enclosed galls on the leaf margins of mostly mature leaves of Allophylus cobbe . These different biologies are reflected in the different immature structure and chaetotaxy, with C. sinica immatures showing the ventro-dorsally flattened body form, and marginal placement of setae typical of pit gall formers; whereas C. allophyli immatures have irregularly dispersed simple setae and non-flattened, broadly inflated body form typical of enclosed gall formers.

Ongoing work by I.M. suggests that Cornegenapsylla is affiliated with the Neotropical genus Phacosemoides Lima and Guitton, 1962, as well as a number of species from the Afrotropical Pseudophacopteron caffrariense -group as defined in Malenovský and Burckhardt (2009).

Type material

Holotype, ♂ (slide mounted), Mis village near Madang, Madang Province, PNG (5°11 ʹ S, 145°47 ʹ E, 50 m), 13 October 2011, (HE01) P. Butterill leg. (BMNH) . Paratypes, 1 ♂, 1 ♀ (HE02, HE 03), immatures: 1 5th, 1 3rd (GALL087 ex Allophylus cobbe), as for holotype (BMNH); 2 ♂ 3 ♀, Baiteta, Madang Province, PNG, 16 May 1995 (AR 16), 27 June 1995, canopy fogging, Sloanea forbesii (Elaeocarpaceae) (AR 19), 28 May 1996 (at light, AR 53), 24 June 1996 (at light, T2), O. Missa leg. (IRNB, MMBC, NHMB, dry and slide mounted and preserved in ethanol).

Gene sequences

GenBank: KT588306 (cytB) (PNGHE 02-11).