Gigantococcus schoutedeni (Vayssière)

Unruh, Corinne M. & Gullan, Penny J., 2008, Identification guide to species in the scale insect tribe Iceryini (Coccoidea: Monophlebidae), Zootaxa 1803 (1), pp. 1-106 : 64-65

Gigantococcus schoutedeni (Vayssière)

Icerya schoutedeni Vayssière, 1926: 337 .

Icerya tremae ( Vayssière, 1926: 344) . Synonymy by Unruh & Gullan (2008: 39).

Gigantococcus schoutedeni (Vayssière) ; Unruh & Gullan (2008: 37) .

Unmounted material. Adult female red-brick in colour, covered with white or yellow wax; wax on dorsum granular; long tufts found around margin, longest at posterior; on venter, ovisac formed by waxy flap of secretion attached to all sides of abdomen (adapted from Vayssière, 1926).

Slide-mounted material. Adult female oval, 3.8–5.0 mm long, 3.1–3.6 mm wide. Antennae 11 segmented. Eyes, mouthparts and legs as for tribe. Thoracic spiracles as for genus, posterior spiracles larger than anterior spiracles. Hair-like setae scattered on all body segments, longest in clusters around margin. Flagellate setae dense on ventral head and thorax, forming sparse transverse rows on ventromedial abdomen. Simple multilocular pores, each with trilocular or quadrilocular centre and 6–8 outer loculi, scattered across dorsal surface and ventral margins, forming middorsal clusters on head and thorax. Simple multilocular pores, each with trilocular, quadrilocular, quinquelocular or hexalocular centre and 4–8 outer loculi, scattered on ventromedial head and thorax. Ovisac band made of simple multilocular pores of two types: (i) larger pores forming inner band 3–5 pores wide, each pore with trilocular to quadrilocular (rarely quinquelocular) centre with 6–8 outer loculi, and (ii) smaller pores forming outer band, 1 or 2 pores wide, each pore with square or star-shaped centre and 6–8 outer loculi. Compound multilocular pores, each 13–16 µm in diameter with 6–12-lobed centre and 6–10 reniform outer loculi, arranged around perimeter of ovisac band, except anteromedially, and densest around margin. Simple multilocular pores, similar to vulvar pores, each pore with trilocular centre (appearing oval) and 6–8 outer loculi, forming transverse rows on ventromedial to submedial abdomen. Vulvar opening as for genus. Cicatrices round, numbering 3, central cicatrix largest. Abdominal spiracles as for genus. Anal tube as for genus; anal opening surrounded by robust hair-like setae and simple multilocular pores, each pore with round centre and 16–18 elongate outer loculi.

Type data. Icerya schoutedeni : DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO [= CONGO BELGE]: Eala, ex Acalypha wilkesiana , vii.1915 (R. Mayné). Icerya tremae : DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO [= CONGO BELGE]: Eala, ex coffee (R. Mayné); Kisangani [=Stanleyville], ex Trema guineensis , mango, guava, citrus and Ura [= Hura ] crepitans, 1912 (J. Ghesquiere).

Type material. Syntypes of Icerya schoutedeni : ad ♀, “ CONGO (Belge):/ Eala VII. 1915 / R. Mayné re’c./ 6581/7/MNHN - Paris/-prepare en 1979/[unintelligible writing]”//“ Icerya schoutedeni Vays / LECTOTYPE [label]/des. Par Foldi / Fevrier 2001 [label]/ ♀ /s/ Acalypha /wilkesiana” ( MNHN) ; 2 ad ♀♀ (one slide), “ex. Coll/ Museum National/d’Histoire Naturelle/PARIS”//“Co-Type”//“ Icerya 2404 / schoutedeni Vayss. /ex Acalypha wilkensiana/Eala (Belgian Congo): July/coll. R. Mayné 1915/ PARATYPE ” ( BMNH) ; ad ♀, “VQ/=34/ V.Q. Beg. Congo / Eala , on Acalypha /wilkensiana Jul 1915 / R. Mayné /Stain Acid Fuchsin/win 3/o Pieric”//“ Icerya nsp./congoensis/Newst/schoutedeni/Vayss./RT.” ( BMNH) ; 2 ad ♀♀, 1 3 rd -instar nymph (one slide), “V.Q =34/ Belgian Congo./ Eala , on/ Acalypha wilkes-/-iana, July 1915 / R. Mayné ”//“ schoutedeni Vayss. / Icerya nsp/congoensis,/Newst/cotype ♀♀ /BM/RV. 1945, 121” ( BMNH) .

Syntypes of Icerya tremae : ad ♀, “ Stanleyville / J.Ghesquiere /1926/ Co-Type /ex. Coll. Museum / National d’Histoire / Naturelle - PARIS”//“ Icerya tremae s/ Tremae guineensis/ Station Entomologique de Paris / ^ PARATYPE 2405” ( BMNH); 2 ad ♀♀, [written on wood] “ Icerya tremae /2001/ LECTOTYPE /des par Foldi 2001 / Eala ( Congo B.)/ R. Mayné 3 –ix –1912 /ex coll. Tervuren /6579/7” ( MNHN) .

Other material examined. REPUBLIC OF SENEGAL: ad ♀, “F.W.AFRICA/Senegal/Eucalyptus/ 13.5.1966 ”//“ Icerya /schoutedeni/Vayss./SN7/C.I.E. 9300.1291/B.M. 1969.27” ( BMNH) .

Taxonomic notes. Refer to the Gi. alboluteus group for discussion of similar species.

Refer to Unruh & Gullan (2008) for discussion of this species. A manuscript name of “ Icerya congoensis ” is written on “co-type” slides of I. schoutedeni at the BMNH and the name is attributed to Newstead.