Pseudoneuroterus mazandarani Melika & Stone, 2010

Melika, George, Pujade-Villar, Juli, Abe, Yoshihisa, Tang, Chang-Ti, Nicholls, James, Wachi, Nakatada, Ide, Tatsuya, Yang, Man-Miao, Pénzes, Zsolt, Csóka, György & Stone, Graham N., 2010, 2470, Zootaxa 2470, pp. 1-79 : 14-16

Pseudoneuroterus mazandarani Melika & Stone , new species

Figs 77–83, 84–90

Type material. HOLOTYPE female: IRAN, Mazandaran Province, Sari (Shahid Zare park, Kiasar, Behshahr), ex Q. castaneifolia , May 2007. coll. G. Melika. PARATYPES: 20 females with the same label as the holotype. The holotype and 15 paratype females are deposited in PDL; 5 paratype females in USNM .

Etymology. The species is named after Mazandaran Province of Iran, where it was collected.

Diagnosis. Closely related to P. macropterus and P. nichollsi by genae distinctly broadened behind eyes, well visible in anterior view, however, in P. mazandarani the body is dark brown, the lower face always yellowish; the antenna and legs are light brown; small wasps, body length 1.8 – 2.1 mm. In the two above-mentioned species the body and antennae are black, the lower face is always black; coxae and part of femurs black; much larger wasps, body length 3.3 – 4.3 mm.

Description. ASEXUAL FEMALE (holotype). Body dark brown, with slightly lighter metasoma, lower face and mandibles always light brown to yellowish; scape and pedicel yellow, flagellomeres and legs (except dark brown basal half of coxae) light brown; head, especially lower face, and mesosoma with dense white setae; wing veins brown, distinct.

Head alutaceous, with white setae, denser on lower face and posteriorly, 2.2 times as broad as long from above; 1.2 times as broad as high and rounded in anterior view and equal to width of mesosoma. Gena alutaceous, slightly broadened behind eye, visible in anterior view, narrower than cross diameter of eye, impressed along outer margin of eye. Malar space alutaceous, without striae and malar sulcus, with dense setae, 0.3 times as long as height of eye. POL 1.3 times as long as OOL; OOL 2.5 times as long as diameter of lateral ocellus, 1.6 times as long as LOL; ocelli slightly ovate, equal in size and shape. Transfacial distance equal in length to height of eye and 1.4 times as long as height of lower face (distance between antennal rim and ventral margin of clypeus); diameter of antennal socket 1.6 times as long as distance between sockets, distance between socket and eye margin slightly larger than diameter of socket. Lower face alutaceous, with elevated coriaceous median area and dense setae. Clypeus rectangular, flat, over 2.0 times as broad as high, coriaceous, with deep anterior tentorial pits, distinct epistomal sulcus and clypeo-pleurostomal line; ventrally emarginate, without median incision. Frons alutaceous, with deep smooth and shiny impression below median ocellus; vertex and occiput uniformly alutaceous; interocellar area coriaceous. Postocciput around occipital foramen impressed, with numerous striae extending to level of gula; posterior tentorial pits large, deep, elongate; hypostomal bridge at least 2.0 times as high as broad, lower part narrowed down to emarginate hypostomal carina; occipital foramen slightly shorter than height of hypostomal bridge, around 1.5 times shorter than height of oral foramen. Antenna with 12 flagellomeres, longer than head+mesosoma; pedicel 1.4 times as long as broad, F1 2.2 times as long as pedicel, equal in length to F2; F3 nearly equal in length to F4 and F5 and slightly shorter than F2, subsequent flagellomeres shorter, F12 equal in length to F11; placodeal sensilla on all flagellomeres, including few visible distally on F1. Sensilla on all flagellomeres indistinct.

Mesosoma longer than high in lateral view, with uniform dense white setae. Pronotum uniformly microreticulate, with uniform white setae, without wrinkles. Mesoscutum longer than broad (width measured across basis of tegulae), smooth or alutaceous, with deep punctures between notauli and between notaulus and parapside, both in posterior half; notaulus absent but indicated by impressed coriaceous stripes and rows of denser setae in entire length of mesoscutum; median mesoscutal line, anterior parallel and parapsidal lines absent. transscutal articulation inconspicuous, mesoscutum emarginate and elevated posteriorly, above dorsoaxillar areas only. Mesoscutellum slightly longer than broad, shorter than length of mesoscutum, with nearly parallel sides, flat, uniformly alutaceous, with sparse setae, overhanging metanotum; without distinct scutellar foveae, with anterior transverse, impressed area, bottom of which smooth and shiny, with some longitudinal parallel wrinkles. Mesopleuron, including speculum, smooth, shiny, with few setae and delicate parallel striae in the center; mesopleural triangle rugose, with dense white setae and some wrinkles. Metapleural sulcus reaching mesopleuron at half height; metapleuron smooth, preaxilla alutaceous; lateral axillar area coriaceous, without setae; axillar carina broad, with longitudinal striae; axillula slightly ovate, smooth, with white setae and some sparse punctures; subaxillular bar narrow, smooth, shiny, in most posterior end narrower than height of metanotal trough. Metascutellum smooth, slightly higher than height of smooth, shiny ventral impressed area; metanotal trough smooth, shiny, without setae. Lateral propodeal carinae absent, central propodeal area smooth, shiny, with some very delicate longitudinal irregular striae, without setae, delimited by dense white setae, uniformly covering lateral propodeal area; nucha very short, with few irregular wrinkles. Forewing longer than body, with distinct brown veins, margin with short dense cilia; radial cell 5.6 times as long as broad, R1 on a short distance running along wing margin, Rs nearly reaching wing margin; areolet large, triangular, delimited by indistinct veins; Rs+M inconspicuous, its projection reaching basalis in the lower third. Tarsal claws simple, without basal lobe.

Metasoma shorter than head+mesosoma, 2.0 times as high as long in lateral view, smooth, shiny, without setae; prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium short, 2.0 – 2.3 times as long as broad ventrally, with very few short setae, which not extend beyond apex of spine.

Body length 1.8 – 2.1 mm (n=10).

Gall. An integral swelling leaf gall, usually located at the base of the leaf midrib or on the main vein, irregularly shaped, multilocular ( Figs 88 – 90). The gall is fleshy, reaching 10 – 15 mm in diameter, and up to 15 mm in length; the rounded larval chambers, 3 – 4 mm in diameter, irregularly embedded into the enlarged tissues of the leaf parenchyma. Young galls are green to pale green-yellowish and remain soft as they mature.

Biology. Only the asexual generation is known to induce integral leaf galls on Q. castaneifolia C.A.Mey. The galls start to develop from May and mature in late May, adults emerge in June. This is an unusual seasonal phenology for an asexual generation, which in other Pseudoneuroterus and Neuroterus-Cerroneuroterus species develop in summer and the asexual galls mature in autumn.

Distribution. Currently known from Iran (Mazandaran province, Sari). Common in the mentioned locality.