Amphibolips ufo Cuesta-Porta & Pujade-Villar, 2023

Cuesta-Porta, Victor, Melika, George, Nicholls, James A., Stone, Graham N., Equihua-Martinez, Armando, Estrada-Venegas, Edith & Pujade-Villar, Juli, 2023, Revision of the Amphibolips ‘ niger’ group with the description of a new species (Hymenoptera: Cynipini), Zootaxa 5360 (4), pp. 451-486 : 477-481

Amphibolips ufo Cuesta-Porta & Pujade-Villar , sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:F1CC57ED-9066-40FE-A0B8-8A0FCFC1A32C

Figs 61–68 , 76

Type material. HOLOTYPE. Asexual female, “MEX-738, Mexico, Zacatecas, Monte Escobedo, Mesa la Cuchilla , ex Q. eduardi , (15.v.2012) 25.v.2012, 1♀ ( UB), leg. J. Pujade-Villar ” (white label), “ Holotype Amphibolips ufo Cuesta-Porta & Pujade-Villar, 2023 , desig. Cuesta-Porta” (red label). PARATYPES. Two asexual females with the same data as the holotype. All the specimens are deposited at the JP-V col ( UB) .

Additional material. One asexual female with the same data as the holotype, used for DNA extraction, deposited in the JP-V col ( UB) .

Etymology. This species is named for its gall resembling a flying saucer, the most common depictions of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO).

Diagnosis. Amphibolips ufo sp. nov. belongs to the group of species characterized by the mesoscutum carinate at least on the anterior half, and the central propodeal area rugose, as in A. elatus , A. gumia , A. jubatus , A. maturus , and A. nebris . It differs from the rest of species of the group by the mesoscutum rugose on posterior half, rugae transversally aligned on anterior half around anterior parallel lines but never forming long carinae, while in the rest of species the mesoscutum is conspicuously carinated, most of the carinae bent towards the posterior margin of mesoscutum.

Description.

Asexual female ( Figs 61–68 ). Head, mesosoma black; antenna dark reddish brown to black; metasoma reddish brown to black posteriorly; mouthparts, legs dark reddish brown to black, with coxae always darker; fore wings smoked.

Head coarsely rugose, with sparse setae, denser on lower face and genae, rounded, transverse, 1.3× as broad as high, narrower than mesosoma in frontal view; 2.0× as broad as long in dorsal view. Gena rugose, slightly broadened behind eye in frontal view, subequal to transverse diameter of eye in lateral view. Malar space with striae radiating from clypeus, malar sulcus absent; eye 2.7× as high as length of malar space. Inner margin of eyes parallel. POL 1.7× as long as OOL, OOL 0.8× as long as diameter of lateral ocellus and 1.3× longer than LOL, LOL 0.6× diameter of lateral ocelli, all ocelli ovate, of same size. Transfacial distance subequal to height of eye; toruli located at mid-height eye; diameter of antennal torulus 3.0× as long as distance between them, distance between torulus and compound eye 1.8× as long as diameter of torulus; lower face rugose, and punctured between the toruli and clypeus, with white setae. Clypeus rounded, nearly as broad as high, punctured, with few setae; ventrally rounded, not emarginate and without median incision; anterior tentorial pit large, rounded, distinct, epistomal sulcus distinct, clypeo-pleurostomal line well impressed. Frons rugose with smooth interspaces, less pubescent than lower face, interocellar area rugose. Vertex rugose, occiput and postocciput alutaceous; occipital carina present, postgena smooth or alutaceous, with or without setae; posterior tentorial pit large, elongated, area below impressed; occipital foramen slightly shorter or as high as height of postgenal bridge; hypostomal carina emarginate, continuing into postgenal sulci which strongly diverge toward occipital foramen, postgenal bridge anteriorly slightly broader than occipital foramen. Antenna shorter than head+mesosoma, with 15 flagellomeres, pedicel as long as broad; flagellomeres not broadening towards apical end; F1 subequal to scapus+pedicel and 1.4× as long as F2; F2 slightly longer than F3; subsequent flagellomeres gradually shorter; F15 1.3× as long as F14; placodeal sensilla on F5–F15.

Mesosoma slightly longer than high, uniformly pubescent. Pronotum rugose, with parallel rugae on lateral margin; propleuron sparsely pubescent and longitudinally carinated. Mesoscutum coarsely rugose, slightly broader than long (greatest width measured across mesoscutum level with base of tegulae). Notaulus inconspicuous; anterior parallel lines faint, obscured by the rugose sculpture, slightly elevated, and extending to 1/2 of mesoscutum length; parapsidal line impressed; median mesoscutal line complete but faintly impressed; parascutal carina broad, reaching pronotum. Mesoscutellum ovate, slightly longer than broad; disk of mesoscutellum, coarsely rugose, barely overhanging metanotum, with sparse long setae; circumscutellar carina inconspicuous. Mesoscutellar foveae big, about as broad as high, with shiny delicately rugose bottom, divided by a strong elevated ridge. Mesopleuron sparsely pubescent, punctured and smooth, faintly striated on central part; speculum densely punctured; mesopleural triangle, with a few strong irregular striae and long white setae; dorsal axillar areas rugose and sparsely pubescent, lateral side smooth; axillula faintly rugose; subaxillular bar smooth, glabrous, triangular, narrowing posteriorly; metapleural sulcus present, upper part of sulcus indistinct. Metascutellum glabrous, rugose, 2.0x as high as height of smooth, glabrous ventral impressed area; metanotal trough smooth, glabrous. Central propodeal area rugose, lateral propodeal area faintly rugose. Tarsal claws with basal lobe.

Fore wing longer than body, smoked, with distinct dense cilia on margin, veins dark brown, radial cell open, 3.8× as long as broad; Rs not reaching wing margin, R1 distinct, not reaching wing margin, 2r angulated, slightly projected into radial cell; areolet big, triangular, closed and distinct. Rs+M visible, reaching basalis slightly below the mid-height or lower.

Metasoma shorter than head+mesosoma, slightly longer than high in lateral view; second metasomal tergum extending to almost the length of metasoma in dorsal view, completely covered in setae laterally, sparsely micropunctured in lateral view on anterior 2/3 and with a dense band of micropunctures on posterior 1/3; subsequent terga, densely pubescent and micropunctured. Hypopygium with micropunctures, prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium 3.8× as long as broad in ventral view, with a few white setae ventrally. Body length 5.8 mm (n=1).

Gall. ( Fig. 76 ) Transversally ovate unilocular woolly twig gall (35 –40 mm in diameter). The pubescence is pale brown with orange tinges and densely packed. The transversal diameter of the gall is widened into a woolly ring. The larval chamber is covered by a thick layer of strongly lignified parenchyma around it and its base is attached to the twig. The structure is cylindrical to peanut-shaped (around 20 mm in height and 10 mm wide) projected perpendicular to the twig, it is central to the gall. The larval chamber is oval, fused within the parenchyma.

Host. Q. eduardi Trel. , section Lobatae .

Biology. The galls were collected in May and the adults emerged soon after.

Distribution. Mexico: Zacatecas State

Figures

FIGURES 61–65. Amphibolips ufo sp. nov., asexual female. 61–62, head: 61, frontal view; 62, dorsal view. 63, head and mesosoma in lateral view. 64, mesosoma in dorsal view. 65, mesoscutellum in dorsal view.

FIGURES 66–68. Amphibolips ufo sp. nov., asexual female. 66, mesosoma in posterior view, propodeum. 67, metasoma in lateral view. 68, habitus in lateral view, and antenna.

FIGURES 75–76. Galls: 75, A. nigra; 76, A. ufo sp. nov.