Signiphora fax Girault, 1913

Figures 181–196

http://eol.org/pages/855957

Signiphora fax Girault, 1913: 223 . Female.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:CA2E39BE-0D0F-41E5-99D5-66970222F477

Thysanus insularis Dozier, 1933: 98 . Female. NEW SYNONYMY urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:94B45CB 8-2715-4 CD3-9BAC-435A1F108055

Signiphora insularis: Rozanov (1965) .

Signiphora desantisi Blanchard in De Santis (1938: 240) (nomen nudum)

Signiphora flavopalliata desantisi De Santis, 1973: 148 . Female. NEW SYNONYMY urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:9CF35B62-2067-4B26-BBE0-E9F25EE795C5

Diagnosis. Fore wing with discal seta; Mt1 bilobed with medial portion rounded; scutellum with 4 setae; medial sclerite of propodeum distinctly lighter in color than lateral sclerites (the difference in color is quite striking in card-mounted or point-mounted specimens); Mt8 of female with a rounded medial incision; Ms8 of male with a pointed anteromedial projection.

Description. Female. Length, anterior margin of pronotum to epiproct apex, 0.32–0.65 mm (n=23). Vertex and frons pale yellow to orange-brown (light brown in lectotype); face, gena and frontovertex yellow, tan or pale brown (lectotype). Antenna pale brown with distal ¼–1/3 of antennal clava occasionally dusky brown. Mesoscutum light brown to brown in anterior 1/3–¾ or entirely brown excepting posterolateral corners. Remainder of mesoscutum, scutellum, metanotum and medial sclerite of propodeum pale yellow (slide-mounts) or bright yellow (card-mounts). Lateral sclerites of propodeum and metasoma uniformly brown to apex; Mt4–Mt7 rarely lighter in color than preceding terga; Mt8, epiproct and ovipositor sheaths dusky brown. Fore wing infuscated from base to approximately apex of stigmal vein, with hyaline areas below marginal vein and in basal area typical for flavopalliata group.

Head. Mandible bidentate, mandibular ducts enlarged apically, pedicel length:scape length 0.59–0.88; 3 anelli, second anellus 2–4× length of the first, third anellus 3–4× length of the first; clava length:scape length 1.35–1.76. Vertex and frons finely, transversely striate or imbricate, with scattered minute punctations.

Mesosoma. Pronotum through propodeum with transversely imbricate sculpture, each cell with fine longitudinal striations visible in good slide mounts at high magnification. Scutellum with 4 setae (occasionally 5 or 6) and 2 campaniform sensilla; medial propodeal sclerite rounded, process on medial sclerite rounded or narrowly rounded apically. Fore wing with discal seta, 2.2–3.9× as long as wide; fore wing LMS:fore wing width 1.0–1.7; marginal vein length:stigmal vein length 3.2–3.6, occasionally shorter; marginal vein with 6 dorsal and usually one ventral setae (occasionally 2 ventral setae or ventral seta absent); seta M3 length:marginal vein length 0.43–0.81; apical end of costal cell at seta M1 to M3. Hind wing with subparallel margins, 5.8–9.0× as long as wide, 0.31– 0.55× width of fore wing; hind wing LMS:hind wing width 2.17–3.75. Mesofemur with one long and one short spine on posteroapical margin, mesotibial spur with 4–6 teeth, mesotibial spur length:basitarsus length 0.76–1.07, basitarsus length:mesotibia length 0.50–0.74.

Metasoma. Mt1 bilobed with medial portion rounded; Mt1 length:Mt2 length 1.0–3.0; ovipositor with anteriormost margin lying under Mt1–Mt5; ovipositor length:metasoma length 0.49–0.84; ovipositor sheath of ovipositor:ovipositor of ovipositor 0.18–0.27; Ms3–Ms6 with anterior projections short to long; Ms 6 in posterior 1/ 4 of metasoma or between ¼ and ½, and with 6–8 setae; Mt8 with anterodorsal margin transverse with a rounded, medial incision.

Male. Length, anterior margin of pronotum to epiproct apex, 0.35–0.57 mm. As described for females except antennal clava always uniformly pale brown; clava length:scape length 1.41–1.89. Genitalia normal for flavopalliata group, digitus with one apical denticle and one seta at its midpoint, digitus approximately 2× as long as wide; Ms8 transverse with a pointed anteromedial projection, or a broadly obtuse triangle with anteromedial angle pointed.

Discussion. De Santis (1973) described S. flavopalliata desantisi, to provide a name for a nomen nudum originally created by Blanchard, and subsequently cited by De Santis as a manuscript name (De Santis 1938, 1957, 1967). De Santis (1973) differentiated S. flavopalliata desantisi from the nominate subspecies by the light color on the medial sclerite of the propodeum and the frons and vertex. However, the color and structural characteristics of the types of S. flavopalliata desantisi are well within the range noted for S. fax . Six specimens reared by Dozier from Aleurothrixus floccosus on Guayacum officinale at Sarthe, Haiti (USNM ENT 00763039–00763042 and USNM ENT 00763034–00763038) are labeled as “ paratypes ” of “ Thysanus guayaci”, which is an unpublished manuscript name and therefore without nomenclatural standing. Two specimens in balsam (MLPA and IFML), ex: Chrysomphalus paulistus Hemp. [now Acutaspis paulista (Hempel), on: olivo, 27.ix.1916, are labeled as “cotypes” of “ Signiphora pedicellata Blanchard ”, which is another unpublished name.

Type material. Signiphora fax Girault—LECTOTYPE ♀ [here designated]: in balsam (USNM Type 14205); West Indies, Grenada, Barbados, coll. D. Morris, 25-VII-1899, ex Chrysomphalus personatus [now Mycetaspis personata] on nutmeg. The slide contains 6 ♀; the ♀ specimen in the middle of the bottom row of 3 specimens (slide oriented with red USNM type label to right and data label to left) is designated lectotype and the slide is labeled accordingly. PARALECTOTYPES: 5 ♀, same slide as lectotype (USNM Type 14205); 3 ♀ in balsam (INHS 72.507) (INHS): Porto Rico [Puerto Rico], San Juan, coll. A. Busck, I-1899, ex Asp. personatus [probably Aspidiotus personatus, now Mycetaspis personata], on guanabana, 45091, 4590. Signiphora insularis Dozier — HOLOTYPE ♀ [examined]: in balsam (USNM Type 44818); HAITI, Damien, coll. H.L. Dozier, 27-I- 1930, ex Lepidosaphes alba [manioc scale, now Aonidomytilus albus (Cockerell)], in association with Aphytis limonus (Rust) and Signiphora maculata . PARATYPES: 2 ♀ in balsam, HAITI, Damien, 29-I-1930, coll. H.L. Dozier, reared from manioc scale (USNM ENT 00763033). Signiphora flavopalliata desantisi De Santis — HOLOTYPE ♀ [examined]: in balsam (MLPA 3839/1); [ARGENTINA], Bs. Aires [Buenos Aires], La Plata, coll. Esquivel, V-1946. PARATYPES: 1 ♂ in balsam (allotype) (MLPA 3839/2); ARGENTINA, [Buenos Aires], La Plata, coll. L. De Santis, IX-1936, ex Protargionia larreae (Leonardi); 1 ♂ in balsam (MLPA 3839/3) [Argentina], Patagones, ex: Aspidiotus hederae (Bouché), on: olivo, D.S., ??.1938. 1 ♀ and 1 ♂ in balsam, (MLPA 3839/7 and 3839/4); [ARGENTINA], Corrientes, ex: Chrysomphalus aonidum Linn., coll. Esquivel, ii.1947 and x.1946. 1 ♂ in balsam (MLPA 3839/10); [ARGENTINA], Prov. de Entre Rios, Concordia, coll. Banfi, 2.ii.1940. 1 ♂ in balsam (MLPA 3839/6); [ARGENTINA, Corrientes] Gran Paz (Ctes), ex: Chrysomphalus aonidum, H. Esq. v.1946. 2 specimens in balsam (MLPA 3839/8 and 3839/9); [ARGENTINA] Tucumán, (Prov. De Tucumán), col. Teran 9.ix.56. 1 ♂ in balsam (MLPA 3839/11); [ARGENTINA, Misiones], Cero-Corá (?), Miss., iii.1934, ex: Coccus hesperidum, on: yerba mate.

Other material examined. ARGENTINA: Buenos Aires: 1 ♀, SHYM0003 (IFML) . 1 ♀, 1 ♂ (MLPA). ARGENTINA: Corrientes: 1 mixed series. UCRC ENT 299343 (UCR) . ARGENTINA: La Rioja: 1 mixed series. UCRC ENT 299329 (UCR) . ARGENTINA: Mendoza: 1 ♀, 1 mixed series (MLPA) . ARGENTINA: Tucumán: 4 ♂, 11 ♀, USNM ENT 763030 (USNM); UCRC ENT 299328 (UCR); TAMU-ENTO X0460303– X0460313 (TAMU); 2 sex unknown. SHYM0004-SHYM0005 (IFML). BRAZIL: Bahia: 1 mixed series. UCRC ENT 299341 (UCR) . BRAZIL: Pernambuco: 4 mixed series, 1 ♀, UCRC ENT 299335–299336, 299338–299340 (UCR) . BRAZIL: Rio de Janeiro: 3 mixed series, 2 ♀, UCRC ENT 299326, 299334, 299337, 300240 (UCR); UCRC ENT 299489 (UCR). BRAZIL: Santa Catarina: 9 sex unknown, 12 ♂, 12 ♀, BMNH (E) 1038919– 1038927, 990101–990124 (BMNH) . BRAZIL: Sao Paulo: 2 sex unknown, 1 ♂, USNM ENT 763025, 763029 (USNM); UCRC ENT 299342 (UCR). CHILE: Tarapaca: 1 ♂, 1 ♀ (MLPA) . GUYANA: 1 mixed series. UCRC ENT 299327 (UCR) . HAITI: 1 ♂, 9 ♀, USNM ENT 763033 –763042 (USNM). MEXICO: Mexico: 1 mixed series. USNM ENT 763028 (USNM) . PERU: Arequipa: 1 mixed series. UCRC ENT 299333 (UCR) . PERU: Ica: 2 mixed series, 1 ♀, UCRC ENT 299330 –299332 (UCR). PERU: Lima: 1 ♀, USNM ENT 763031 (USNM) . PUERTO RICO: 1 mixed series. USNM ENT 763024, 763027 (USNM) . TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: CNCHYMEN 122347 – 122348 (CNC) . URUGUAY: Montevideo: 1 ♀, USNM ENT 763023 (USNM) . USA: Florida: 2 ♀, TAMU-ENTO X0852778, X0852779 (TAMU) . USA: Georgia: 1 sex unknown. USNM ENT 763032 (USNM) . USA: Hawaii: 1 ♀, TAMU-ENTO X0852780 (TAMU) . USA: Texas: 1 ♂, USNM ENT 763022 (USNM) .

Biology. Most of the records are from Diaspididae: Aonidomytilus espinosai (Porter); Aonidiella aurantii, Aspidiotus spp., Chionaspis sp., Chrysomphalus spp., Hemiberlesia lataniae (Signoret); and Lepidosaphes beckii (Newman) . One series of males and females reared by Beingolea from Lepidosaphes beckii from the Chincha Valley, Ica, Peru was apparently hyperparasitic through Aphytis lepidosaphes (Aphelinidae) . Two females collected by Parker from an armored scale on laurel or bay at Montevideo, Uruguay (USNM ENT 00763024) were suspected hyperparasitoids. There is one record from an Aleyrodidae: Dozier reared 6 females and 3 males from Aleurothrixus floccosus on Guayacum officinale at Sarthe, Haiti (USNM ENT 00763039–00763042 and USNM ENT 00763034–00763038).