Figites aciculatus (Benoit, 1956)

van Noort, Simon, Buffington, Matthew L. & Forshage, Mattias, 2014, Review of Afrotropical Figitinae (Figitidae, Cynipoidea, Hymenoptera) with the first records of Neralsia and Lonchidia for the region, ZooKeys 453, pp. 37-69 : 42-44

Taxon classification Animalia Hymenoptera Figitidae

Figites aciculatus (Benoit, 1956) Figures 1, 2

Xyalophora aciculata Benoit, 1956.

Figites aciculatus (Benoit, 1956). Combination by Jiménez et al. 2008c.

Figites effossus Benoit, 1956, syn. n.

Figites favonius Benoit, 1956, syn. n.

Figites fraudator Benoit, 1956, syn. n.

Figites furvus Benoit, 1956, syn. n.

Figites aciculatus Images of all the type specimens are available on waspweb: http://www.waspweb.org/Cynipoidea/Figitidae/Figitinae/Figites/index.htm

Additional material examined.

CAMEROON, 1F: Nkoemvon, vii - viii 1979, Ms D. Jackson, Figites sp. det M. Forshage 2012 (BMNH); DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO, 1M: Parc Nat. Albert, SL Edouard: r. Rwindi, 1000m, 4.ii.1936, L. Lippens (RMCA); 1M: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru, 1285m, 13 au 20.xii.1933, G.F. de Witte: 122 (BMNH); 1M: same data except:, 23 au 25.xii.1933, G.F. de Witte: 132 (RMCA); 2M: Conge Belge: P.N.A., N’Zulu (Lac Kivu), 1500m, 6 au 7.ii.1934, G.F. de Witte: 221 (BMNH; RMCA); 1M: Conge Belge: Kivu, Sake, (Lac Kivu), 1460m, 19/22.ii.1934, G.F. de Witte: 253 (RMCA); 1M: Conge Belge: P.N.A., Burunga (Mokoto) 2000m, 17 au 19.iii.1934 G.F. de Witte: 313 (RMCA); 1M: Conge Belge: P.N.A., Près Mt. Kambatembe ( Forêt) 2200m, 12-iv-934, G.F. de Witte: 348 (RMCA); 2M: Conge Belge: P.N.A., Rutshuru, 1285m, 18 au 23.vi.1934, G.F. de Witte: 448 (BMNH; RMCA); 2M: Conge Belge: P.N.A., Nyarusambo, 2000m, 2.vii.1934, G.F. de Witte: 465 (RMCA); 1F: Conge Belge: P.N.A., Mt. Sesero, pres Bitashimva (Bambousi) 2000m, 1 au 2.viii.1934, G.F. de Witte: 505 (RMCA); 1M: Conge Belge: Uele, Monga, 450m, 18.iv. au 8.v.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1334 (RMCA); 1F: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru, 1285m, 29 au 31.v.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1395 (RMCA); 1F: same data except:, G.F. de Witte: 1396 (BMNH); 1F: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru, (riv. Musugereza), 1100m, 4.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1607 (RMNH); 1M: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru, 1285m, 3.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1610 (RMCA); 1M: same data except: G.F. de Witte: 1611 (RMCA); 2M: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru (riv. Fuku), 1250m, 5.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1621 (BMNH); 1M: same data except: G.F. de Witte: 1622 (RMCA); 1F: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru, 1285m, 12.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1639 (RMCA); 1F: same data except: G.F. de Witte: 1641 (BMNH); 1F: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru (Lubirizi), 1285m, 13.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1645 (RMNH); 1F: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru, 1285m, vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1671 (RMNH); 1M: Conge Belge: Kivu, Nyongera ( près Rutshuru), Butumba, 1218m, 17.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1669 (BMNH); 2F: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru (riv. Rodahira), 1285m, 2.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1675 (RMNH); 1F: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru (riv. Fuku), 1250m, 4.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1678 (RMNH); 3F, 1M: Conge Belge: Kivu, Rutshuru 1285m, 2.vii.1935, G.F. de Witte: 1685 (RMNH); 1M: Democratic Republic of Congo Conge Belge: P.N.A., Ganza (860m), 4-6-vii-1949. Mis G.F. de Witte: 2758a (RMNH); 1F: Conge Belge: P.N.A., Secteur Tshiaberimu, Riv. Mbulikerere, affl. Dr. Talia N, 2720m, 26-28.viii.1953, P. Vanschuytbroeck & V. Hendrickx, 4999-5005 (BMNH); 2 F 2M: Conge Belge: P.N.A., Mont Hoyo, 1280m, sur plantes basses, 7-15.vii.1955, P. Vanschuytbroeck, 13274-309 (BMNH; RMNH); 1F: Conge Belge: P.N.A., 21-iv-1955, P. Vanschuytbroeck & R. Fonteyn, 12.813-16 Secteur Tshiaberimu, Mont Musienene, 2.680 m, près de Kirungu (RMNH); 1M: Conge Belge: P.N.A., 16-vii-1957, P. Vanschuytbroeck VS 84 (2) Secteur Nord, riv. Lesse, affl. G. Semliki, 695 m (RMNH); ETHIOPIA, 1M: Nazareth, 6700', 16-19.II.62, S.M. Clark (CNCI); KENYA, 2F: Kakamega Forest, 18.xii.1970, A.E. Stubbs, B.M. 1972-211 (BMNH); SOUTH AFRICA, 1F: Eastern Cape Province, Port St John, Pondoland, June 12-30 1923, R.E. Turner, Brit. Mus. 1923-363 (BMNH); 1F: [Kwazulu-Natal], Natal, Van Reenen, Drakensberg 1-22.i.1927, R.E. Turner, Brit. Mus. 1927-54 (BMNH); 1F: Eastern Cape Province, Katberg, 15-30.i.1933, R.E. Turner, Brit. Mus. 1933-108 (BMNH); UGANDA, 1M: Mulange, R, Dummer, Nov, 1922. Figites det M. Soderlund 1993, SAM-HYM-P002880 (SAMC). 1F: Kazhara, H.C. Taylor, iii.1939, Brit. Mus. 1956-25, Figites det. J. Quinlan, 1957 (BMNH); 1 F: Kawanda, T.H.C. Taylor, xi.1942, Brit. Mus. 1956-25, Figites det. J. Quinlan, 1957 (BMNH); 2M: Ruwenzori Range, Namwamba Valley, 10 100 ft., T.H.E. Jackson, xii.1934-i.1935, B.M. E. Africa. Exp., B.M. 1935-203 (BMNH); YEMEN, 1F: Ar Rujum, 15°27.47'N, 43°38.10'E, 16.10.00-15.01.01, in Malaise-trap, coll. A. van Harten & A.M. Hager, 5464, SAM-HYM-P046196 (SAMC).

Distribution.

Democratic Republic of Congo ( Benoit 1956), Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Yemen (new records).

Description synopsis with overview of morphological variation.

Female. Head, mesosoma, metasomal tergite 1, coxae black; rest of metasoma reddish brown; scape black, rest of antennae pale to dark reddish brown, multiporous fig sensilla (MPS) concolourous with segment or more silver, legs testaceous, femora darker. Antennae pale to dark reddish-brown, 11 flagellar segments; flagellar segment 1 longer than segment 2; flagellar segments 1-4 with no MPS; remaining 7 segments with single row of MPS except for the club segment which has 2 rows; club segment about twice the length of penultimate segment and 1.5 × longer than wide. Occiput with reticulate sculpturing or parallel carina, but may be fairly smooth with only a few weak parallel carina on posterior edge of vertex orientated parallel to genal carina. Pronotal fig cordate, smooth. Medial posterior impression present or absent between notauli. Scutellar posterior rim raised into what appears to be a tooth visible in lateral view. Mesopleuron completely striate or with smooth medial patch. Marginal cell open or closed. Marginal vein often present, but hyaline and only pigmented for basal half to three-quarters of vein. Cell usually less than twice as long as wide 1.3 ×–1.8× but may be 2.0 ×. Basal vein usually shorter (0.65 –0.85×) than portion of subcostal vein forming 1st cubital cell, but may be longer (1.25 ×). Propodeal shelf as long as metasomal petiole in lateral view. Metasomal tergite 2 smooth or with longitudinal striations that can form a short collar or extend almost the length of tergite. Tergite 3 smooth or sometimes with lateral striate patch, striations often weak. Fore tarsal basal segment = the remaining segments in length.

Male. Colour as in female. Twelve flagellomeres. First two flagellar segments equal in length and each equal to scape & pedicel combined. 1st flagellar segment 3 × longer than wide. Scape 3 × pedicel length. Face reticulate to centrally smooth with weak lateral carina. Occiput reticulate to rather smooth, with faint indications of carinae in reticulate pattern. Toruli separated by a third to a half of their own diameter. Eyes separated by just over 1.1 × eye length. Pronotal collar smooth. Mesopleuron with dorsal medial smooth patch. Slight medial posterior depression between notauli. Scutellar tooth strong in lateral view or may be almost absent with scutellar rim very low in specimens that are generally less sculptured. Vertical parallel carina on scutellar posterior vertical surface. Pronotal shelf same length as metasomal tergite 1 petiole in lateral view. Pronotum with two parallel raised longitudinal carinae bounding medial rectangular area. Marginal cell may be obviously closed with pigmented vein or may be open with vein loosing pigment. 1.5 ×–2.0× longer than wide. Basal vein usually shorter (0.7 –0.9×) than portion of subcostal vein forming 1st cubital cell. Tergite 2 smooth or with very faint weak striations near base. Tergite 3 may have a very small patch of very weak striations.

Comments.

Benoit described five species (in two genera) based on single specimens using differential characters that are highly variable and likely to be indicative of intraspecific variation. Benoit deemed that Figites aciculatus possessed a scutellar spine and hence placed this species in Xyalophora . Examination of the holotype clearly shows this specimen to possess the same character state as in the rest of the Figites species that he described, i.e. a rounded scutellum with no indication of a spine in outline in dorsal view (distinguishing this genus from both Xyalophora and Neralsia ), although the posterior scutellar rim appears as a small tooth in lateral view. Jiménez and Pujade-Villar (2008c) correctly transferred this species to Figites . Although we initially attempted to find correlating characters across an examined series of 57 specimens to corroborate Benoit’s species delimitation, there was no consistency in reliably diagnostic character states, alone or in combination. In particular, the degree of closure of the radial vein, and degree of sculpturing, including presence (and extent of) or absence of striations on metasomal tergites 1 and 2, which are two of the main characters used by Benoit to define his species, are variable across the series of specimens that we have examined. Specimens cannot always reliably be placed in one or the other of Benoit’s species, because of possession of different character state combinations and a continuous range of variation across body size (specimens range in body length from 2-4 mm). The degree and extent of sculpturing varies with specimen size with smaller specimens tending to be smoother overall with reduced sculpturing on the occiput, pronotum, mesopleuron, metacoxae and metasomal tergites. A potential useful character state is the type of sculpturing present on the occiput, which may be reticulate or have the cross-carina absent creating parallel carina. Although appearing very different, this latter character state is likely to be related to a reduction in sculpturing and is not consistently correlated with other potentially diagnostic characters. Larger specimens tend to be more sculptured with reticulate occipital sculpturing and a closed marginal cell and smaller specimens less sculptured with parallel carina on the occiput and an open marginal cell, but there are intermediates and exceptions. Many of the specimens with occipital reticulate sculpturing and a closed marginal vein could be assigned to Figites aciculatus (the holotype is a large specimen with a 4 mm body length), but there were also specimens with a closed marginal cell and parallel carina. There are even specimens that have different degrees of closure of the marginal cell on each wing, so clearly this is a plastic character e.g. a female from Kivu, Rutshuru (Democratic Republic of Congo) has one wing with the marginal cell open and other wing with the marginal cell closed. In many specimens the vein is often present along the entire wing margin, but not completely pigmented and therefore depending on lighting, background colour and magnification strength, the marginal cell can be interpreted as open or closed, compounding reliable identification. The relative dimensions of the marginal cell also exhibit a range of variability (1.6 –2.1× as long as wide), and the basal vein is usually much shorter (0.67 –0.71×) than the portion of the subcostal vein forming the 1st cubital cell. However, in the Cameroon specimen, the marginal cell can be a little more than twice as long as wide and the basal vein is longer (1.25 ×) than the portion of subcostal vein forming the 1st cubital cell. Together with an extended hypopygium, this specimen could represent an undescribed species, but it appears to fit at the end of the range of variability of these characters. The hypopygium usually does not extend beyond the end of the metasoma, but depending on the extension or contraction of the metasomal segments the hypopygium (and ovipositor sheaths) may extend beyond the end of the metasoma, as in the Cameroon specimen.

The degree of striation on the pronotum is also variable with the posterior medial lateral section usually smooth and this smooth area can extend to the anterior medial margin. The mesopleuron can be completely striate or with a smooth medial patch, the latter state more typical of males. Two other characters used by Benoit are also variable and difficult to characterize: the medial depression, sometimes present posteriorly between the notauli, is highly variable in depth and presence and difficult to discern if weakly present; the presence or absence of the forewing areolet is also variable, usually very difficult to discern and arguably closed or open if it is visible.

Based on re-interpretation and subsequent appreciation that the diagnostic characters used by Benoit are highly plastic, in combination with the fact that his species concepts are based on single specimens that are representative of different points in a continuous range of variation, we synonymize these taxa under Figites aciculatus . We chose this name because the type is in good condition and is representative of the most common morphology (within the range of intra-specific variation) exhibited by the specimens we have examined.