Andricus libani Melika, Challis & Stone, 2008

Tavakoli, M., Melika, G., Sadeghi, S. E., Pénzes, Z., Assareh, M. A., Atkinson, R., Bechtold, M., Mikó, I., Zargaran, M. R., Aligolizade, D., Barimani, H., Bihari, P., Pirozi, F., Fülöp, D., Somogyi, K., Challis, R., Preuss, S., Nicholls, J. & Stone, G. N., 2008, New species of oak gallwaps from Iran (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Cynipini), Zootaxa 1699 (1), pp. 1-64 : 18-20

Andricus libani Melika, Challis & Stone , new species

Figs 120–134

Type material. HOLOTYPE female: LEBANON, Deir el Zahari, Q. infectoria , coll. 27.VIII.2005. leg. A. Aebi and R. Nuwayhid, em. IV.2006 . PARATYPES: 6 females: 2 females with the same labels as the holotype; 2 females labelled as ” LEBANON, Ain Dara (Chouf), Q. infectoria , 25.VIII.2005, leg. A. Aebi, em. IV.2006 ” ; one female labelled as ” LEBANON, Jezzine , Q. infectoria , coll. 27.VIII.2005. leg. A. Aebi, em. IV.2006 ” ; one female labelled as ” LEBANON, Bashinta , Q. infectoria , coll. 25.VIII.2005. leg. A. Aebi, em. 17.IV.2006 ”. The holotype in HNHM ; 4 female paratypes in SPL.

Etymology. The species is named after the country where it was collected and in honour of Dr. Rida Y. Nuwayhid, the Lebanese scientist at the Engineering Department, The American University of Beirut who guided us to the galls.

Diagnosis. Most closely resembles A. coriarius (Hartig) in which the head is rounded in front view; OOL 2.8 times as long as the length of the lateral ocellus and only very slightly longer than LOL; F1 2.3 times as long as the pedicel, placodeal sensilla on F3–F11; the median mesoscutal line absent; the mesoscutellum is rounded posteriorly, nearly as long as broad; scutellar foveae transversely ovate; the radial cell of the forewing 6.0 times as long as broad; all metasomal tergites with dense white setae laterally; metasomal tergite 2 without, all subsequent tergites and the hypopygium with dense micropunctures, while in A. libani , new species, the head broadest part in front view is in the upper 1/3 of the compound eye; OOL only 2.0 times as long as the length of the lateral ocellus and 1.5 times as long as LOL; F1 1.7 times as long as the pedicel, placodeal sensilla on F2–F11; the median mesoscutal line extending nearly to the half length of the mesoscutum; the mesoscutellum slightly broader than long, postero-medially elongated into a short blunt tip; scutellar foveae are kidney-shaped; the radial cell of the forewing only 4.5 times as long as broad; only metasomal tergite 2 with a patch of dense white setae antero-laterally, without micropunctures; all subsequent tergites and the hypopygium without micropunctures and setae.

Description. ASEXUAL FEMALE (holotype). Body, including antennae and legs, reddish brown; only head posteriorly, mesosoma ventrally, scutellar foveae and central propodeal area black or dark brown. Wing veins dark brown.

Head coriaceous, with uniformly dense white setae, 2.2 times as broad as long from above; 1.4 times as broad as high in front view and slightly narrower or equal to mesosoma. Gena coriaceous, broadened behind eye, much broader than cross diameter of eye; head broadest part in front view is in the upper 1/3 of compound eye. Malar space delicately coriaceous, 0.45 times as long as height of eye, without radiating striae. POL 1.7 times as long as OOL; OOL 2.0 times as long as length of lateral ocellus and 1.5 times as long as LOL. Transfacial distance 1.2 times as long as height of eye and 1.7 times as long as height of lower face (distance between antennal rim and ventral margin of clypeus); diameter of antennal torulus 1.4 times as long as distance between them, distance between torulus and eye margin 1.4 times as long as diameter of torulus. Lower face coriaceous, with strongly elevated median area. Clypeus rectangular, coriaceous, with distinct deep anterior tentorial pits, with distinct epistomal sulcus and clypeo-pleurostomal line, ventrally rounded, slightly emarginated, without median incision. Frons, vertex and occiput uniformly coriaceous. Antenna with 12 flagellomeres, slightly longer than head+mesosoma; pedicel 1.5 times as long as broad; F1 1.7 times as long as pedicel and slightly longer than F2, F2 1.3 times as long as F3, all subsequent flagellomeres shorter; F12 1.3 times as long as F11; placodeal sensilla on F2–F11, absent on F1.

Mesosoma convex, slightly longer than high in lateral view, with uniform dense white setae. Pronotum delicately coriaceous; rugose and with very dense white setae along antero-lateral edge. Mesoscutum coriaceous (in some paratypes more or less reticulate, especially the internotauli area). Notauli complete, wellimpressed in all length, strongly divirging in anterior 1/3; median mesoscutal line extending nearly to half length of mesoscutum; anterior parallel and parapsidal lines distinct, broad, smooth and shiny, reaching above half of mesoscutum length. Mesoscutellum slightly broader than long, postero-medially elongated into a short blunt tip, rugose, with more delicate sculpture towards the center of the disk; overhanging metanotum. Scutellar foveae kidney-shaped, deep, well-delimited all around, with shiny, smooth bottom, medially separated by a narrow central carina. Mesopleuron, including speculum, uniformly alutaceous, with dense white setae; mesopleural triangle coriaceous, with very dense white setae; acetabular carina delimiting a very narrow area laterally, barely traceable under dense setae. Metapleural sulcus reaching mesopleuron at the half of its height; preaxilla and lateral axillar area delicately coriaceous, without setae; axillar carina with numerous longitudinal striae; axillula transversely ovate, with dense white setae; subaxillular bar smooth, shiny, in the most posterior end higher than height of metanotal trough. Metascutellum delicately coriaceous, at least 4.0 times as high as height of smooth, shiny ventral impressed area; metanotal trough smooth, shihy, with sparse white setae. Propodeum delicately coriaceous; lateral propodeal carinae thin, subparallel, without setae; central propodeal area shining, with very few irregular delicate wrinkles; lateral propodeal area uniformly alutaceous, with dense white setae; nucha very short, with longitudinal sulci. Forewing longer than body, with dark brown veins, margin with short cilia; radial cell 4.5 times as long as broad, Rs and R1 nearly reaching wing margin, areolet distinct, Rs+M nearly reaching basalis in its lower half. Tarsal claws with strong basal lobe. Metasoma nearly as long as head+mesosoma; metasomal tergite 2 with a patch of dense white setae only antero-laterally, without micropunctures; all subsequent tergites and hypopygium without micropunctures and without setae; prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium 2.7 times as long as broad, apical setae reaching far beyond the apex of spine. Body length 2.8–4.1 mm.

Gall ( Figs 131–134 ). On lateral and terminal shoot buds, on both young and old trees. The gall is similar to that induced by A. coriarius , in that it is usually globular-slightly flattened, contains many larval chambers, and is coated in spines. However, in contrast to A. coriarius (see description in A. coriariformis above), the spines on A. libani are usually very short (often less than 5 mm in length), blunt and often recurved. The gall is also usually somewhat smaller than A. coriarius , usually with a maximum diameter of 20 mm.

Biology. Only the asexual generation is known from galls on Quercus infectoria Olivier. Rare.

Comments. This species was initially detected on the basis of DNA sequence data for the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and the nuclear 28S D2 region ( Challis et al. 2007). Although originally identified as Andricus coriarius on the basis of overall gall morphology, all adults with the above described phenotype belong to a single well-resolved clade that is inferred to have diverged from A. coriarius almost 9 million years ago. Existing sequence data suggest that A. libani is not closely related to A. coriarius , and not a member of the A. kollari species group ( Challis et al. 2007).

The extreme rarity of purely asexual lifecycles in oak gallwasps ( Stone et al. 2002) suggests that A. libani p robably has a sexual generation. The clade of Andricus species that includes A. libani all have lifecycles involving alternation between oaks in the sections Quercus (for the asexual generation) and Cerris (for the sexual generation). The sexual generation galls in this clade are commonly small and inconspicuous bud or catkin galls ( Melika, Csóka & Pujade-Villar 2000; Cook et al. 2002; Rokas et al. 2003b), and it is probable that the same is true for this new species. Possible hosts from the Cerris oak section in the region include Quercus libani Olivier and Q. brantii Lindl. (= Q. persica Jaub. et Spach ).

Distribution. Lebanon (Deir el Zahari, Ain Dara (Chouf), Jezzine and Bashinta).

Figures

FIGURES 120–130. Andricus libani, new species, asexual female: 120, head (front view); 121, head (dorsal view); 122, head (lateral view); 123, antenna; 124, mesoscutum and mesoscutellum (dorsal view); 125, mesosoma (lateral view); 126, metanotum and propodeum (postero-dorsal view); 127, hind tarsal claw; 128, forewing; 129, metasoma (lateral view); 130, prominent part of the ventral spine of hypopygium (ventral view).

FIGURES 131–134. Andricus libani, new species, gall (photos by G. Melika, taken from dry galls).