Pseudasphondylia Monzen, 1955

Hidaka, Chiho, Yang, Chien-Hui & Wakabayashi, Kaori, 2022, Scyllarides squammosus Nisto, Zoological Studies 61 (39), pp. 1-13 : 4-7

Genus Pseudasphondylia Monzen, 1955

Pseudasphondylia Monzen 1955: 41 . Type species: P. rokuharensis Monzen, 1955 .

Philadelphella Kovalev 1964: 440 . Type species. P. philadelphi Kovalev, 1964 .

The genus is characterized as follows: the mediobasal lobes of the gonostyli is present and unsclerotized; two separate teeth of gonostylus on male terminalia; the presence of elongate spiracles on the pupal abdomen; and the absence of setae on the larval cervical papillae. General descriptions of the genus are shown in Tokuda and Yukawa (2005) and key to males of known species in Elsayed et al. (2019) and Matsuda et al. (2021). In this paper, one new species is described and one known species is recorded for the first time in Taiwan.

Pseudasphondylia kiwiphila sp. nov. Lin, Tokuda & Yang ( Figs. 2–3 ; Table 2) urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:2CFC9093-2918-4D80-B2E9-BF2FC36231CC

Type material: Holotype: Male (on a slide, TFRI). TAIWAN: Taipei City, Erziping trial, 11.x.2014, leg. HL Lee. Paratypes. TAIWAN: 3ò, 4ñ, 8 exuviae (on slides, TFRI), same data as holotype; 5 exuviae (in ethanol, NCHU), same data as holotype; 1 pupa (in ethanol, TFRI), 1 larva (on a slide, TFRI), Taipei City, Erziping trial, 1.ix.2017, leg. CT Hsu; 9 larvae (8 on slides, 1 in ethanol, TFRI) Taipei City, Mt. Yangming (GPS: N25.1717072, E121.5403027), 19.viii.2018, leg. J Liu.

Distribution: Taiwan and Japan.

Etymology: The species name refers to its host which is derived from the common name of the fruit “kiwi” and favorite in Greek “phila”.

Host: Actinidia rufa (Siebold & Zucc.) Planch. ex Miq.

Gall: One or several chambers in each fruit gall, gall size 9–10 mm in diameter; smaller than normal fruit ( Tung et al. 2018). Early stages of gall development occur at host flowering season in April to May. Galls continuously develop and mature in July or August. Galled fruit falls to the ground in October or November.

Life history: According to Tung et al. (2018), females lay their eggs on flowers of A. rufa during April and May, and larvae mature in the fruit galls in August and September. They pupate during September to October, and adults emerge from September to October. The life cycle of the new species is similar to the Japanese congener P. matatabi , which also has one generation on Actinidia from spring to autumn. The remaining parts of the life history are still unclear, but the gall midge possibly alternates host plant(s) to overwinter as has been suggested for P. matatabi and another congener P. kiritanii in Japan ( Tokuda and Yukawa 2005). Some immature larvae of the new species, possibly diapausing, were found in fallen galls in winter.

Adult: Head. Eye bridge five to six facets long. Frontoclypeal setal counts as in table 2. Palpus three-segmented ( Fig. 2A ), first palpal segment 35–50 μm long, same as width; second 1.3× as long as first; third 3.7× as long as first. Scape and pedicel with rather dense setae and scales; male first flagellomere ca. 200 μm long, 4.0× as long as wide and 1.1× as long as second, 1.6× as long as fifth, distal three segments similar length ( Fig. 2B ); female first flagellomere ca. 230 μm, 1.4× as long as second and fifth, distal three flagellomeres gradually shortened and terminal one subglobular ( Fig. 2C ).

Thorax: Thoracic setal and scale counts as in table 2. All legs covered with many blackish scales, first tarsomeres of all legs with apical spur. Claws simple and strongly curved on all legs; pulvilli shorter than claws; empodia slightly longer than claw ( Fig. 2D–E ). Male wing 2.6–3.1 mm long, 2.2× as wide; female wing 3.0– 3.5 mm long, 2.2× as long as wide; densely covered with dark grayish hairs; R5 joining costa a little beyond wing apex ( Fig. 2F–G ).

Male Abdomen: First through seventh tergites rectangular with three to six rows of posterior setae; elsewhere covered with scales on first through seventh tergites; eighth tergite without setae.

Terminalia ( Fig. 3A ): cerci incised deeply by U-shaped emargination, apex setose; hypoproct incised deeply by V-shaped emargination, each lobe with one apical seta; gonostylus suboval, situated posteriorly to gonocoxite; mediobasal lobe present, shorter than cerci and hypoproct; aedeagus laterally sclerotized, distally tapering.

Female abdomen: Ovipositor protractile, slender, aciculate, basally with a bilobed cerci-like structure; needle part 1.6 mm long, 2.8× as long as the length of seventh sternite. Otherwise as in male.

Pupa: Body length ca. 3.2 mm, pupal skin not pigmented except for antennal horns. Antennal horn 320–420 µm long, triangular, lateral smoothly ( Fig. 3B ); cephalic papilla with seta, 90–110 µm long; frons without horns; a pair of lateral facial papillae on each side; prothoracic horn 380–530 µm long; stigmatal tubercles present on second to fifth abdominal segments ( Fig. 3C ), 140–240 µm long; second to seventh abdominal segments with 5 to 6 and eight abdominal segments with 3 to 5 transverse rows of spines, respectively; 6 dorsal papillae on first to seventh abdominal segments, outer and inner pairs, each with seta; 2 dorsal papillae on eighth abdominal segment, each with seta; each abdominal segment with pleural papilla, each with seta.

Mature larva: Body length ca. 2.9–3.5 mm, body color in life yellow; Second antennal segment short; cervical papillae without seta; sternal spatula 480–520 µm long ( Fig. 3D ) anteriorly with two lobes; 2 sternal papillae present on all thoracic and first to seventh abdominal segments, each with seta; 3 lateral papillae ( Fig. 3E ) present on each side of all thoracic segments, inner two with seta; 2 pleural papillae present on each side of thoracic and abdominal segments, each with seta; 4 ventral papillae on first to seventh abdominal segments and 2 ventral papillae on eighth abdominal segment, each with seta; 4 dorsal papillae on each side of all thoracic and first to seventh abdominal segments, 2 dorsal papillae on eighth abdominal segment, each with seta; 8 terminal papillae present, two of them each with large seta, four of them each with minute seta, and remaining two without setae.

Remarks: The new species is morphologically similar to Japanese P. matatabi , but distinguishable by having the ovipositor (needle part: 1.6 mm) and palpal segments (35–50, 55–70, and 140–180 μm) that are longer than those of P. matatabi (needle part: 1.4 mm; palpal segments: 25, 45–62.5, and 76.5–130 μm) ( Tokuda and Yukawa 2005). In addition, the mediobasal lobe of gonostyli in male is shorter than cerci in the new species but longer in P. matatabi .

Figures

Fig. 2. Pseudasphondylia kiwiphila sp. nov. (A) Male head (ventral view) (B) Male antenna (8–12 segment). (C) Female antenna (8–12 segment). (D) Male 5th tarsomere. (E) Female 5th tarsomere. (F) Male wing. (G) Female wing. Scale bars: A–C = 0.02 mm; D–F = 0.1 mm; G–H = 1 mm.

Fig. 3. Pseudasphondylia kiwiphila sp. nov. (A) Male genitalia. (B) Pupal antennal horn. (C) Pupal abdomen; arrow refer to spiracle tube. (D) Larval sternal spatula. (E) larval lateral papillae, arrow refers to lateral papillae. Scale bars:A = 0.1 mm; B and D = 0.3 mm; C = 1.0 mm.