Ceroptres confertus ( McCracken & Egbert, 1922 ), 1944

Lobato-Vila, Irene & Pujade-Villar, Juli, 2019, Revision of world Ceroptresini (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) with the description of a new genus and five new species, Zootaxa 4685 (1), pp. 1-67 : 24-25

Ceroptres confertus ( McCracken & Egbert, 1922)

( Figures 3d , 5 g–h)

Periclistus confertus McCracken & Egbert, 1922 . Stanford Univ., Pubs., Univ. Ser. Biol. Sci. 3(1): 62–63. Type material: CAS. Ceroptres confertus (McCracken & Egbert) Weld, 1944 . Proc. U. S. Natl. Mus. 95: 2.

Type material (examined). LECTOTYPE (♀) with the following labels: ‘L.S.Jr.U., Lot 554, Sub 260’ (white label) / ‘ ♀ TYPE’ (red label) / ‘confertus’ (white label, handwritten) / ‘Stanford Univ., Coll. Access’d, L.A.C.M 1964’ (white label) / ‘Sub 260, Periclistus confertus n. sp. from Andricus confertus n. sp., Q. lobata’ (white label with a red frame, handwritten) / ‘ California Academy of Sciences, Type No. 5817’ (white label) / ‘ Lectotype ♀ Periclistus confertus McCracken & Egbert, 1922 , IL-V desig-2019’ (red label) / ‘ Ceroptres confertus (McCracken & Egbert) Weld, 1944 , IL-V det. 2019’ (white label).

Diagnosis. This species can be easily separated from the rest of Ceroptres by its amber body, being the only known species with this coloration pattern (the other species are usually totally or partially black or brownish, rarely rufous) and by having vertical carinae on the lower face inconspicuous to absent (clearly visible at least present close to the toruli in the rest of species, except in C. quadratifacies sp. nov., see below).

Redescription. Female. Length. Body length 2.6 mm (n=1).

Color ( Figs 3d ; 5g, h ). Amber. Head, mesosoma and metasoma, amber; tegulae yellow. Antennae and legs, yellow. Wings hyaline, veins yellow.

Head. In anterior view ( Fig. 3d ) subtriangular to round-shaped, about 1.1 times as wide as high, genae not expanded behind compound eyes. Face with moderately long but not dense pubescence, lower face with short striae radiating from sides of clypeus, not reaching the toruli nor the ventral margin of compound eyes; medially without striae; vertical carinae inconspicuous to absent, even though a very small depressed area is present very close to the toruli. Clypeus distinct, not projected over mandibles. Malar space about 0.5 times as long as height of compound eye. Anterior tentorial pits visible; pleurostomal sulcus absent, epistomal sulcus slightly impressed. Transfacial line about as long as height of compound eye. Toruli situated mid-height of compound eye; distance between torulus and compound eye shorter than diameter of the toruli; distance between the toruli shorter than diameter of the toruli. Front finely coriaceous to alutaceous, with neither punctures nor frontal carinae. Head in dorsal view ( Fig. 5h ) is about 1.8 times as wide as long. Vertex finely coriaceous to alutaceous, without punctures. POL:OOL:LOL = 13:6:7 and diameter of lateral ocelli just slightly shorter than OOL. Occiput finely coriaceous to alutaceous, without punctures.

Antennae ( Fig. 5g ). 13-segmented; filiform, not broadened apically; pubescence dense and short. Scape plus pedicel about 1.4 times as long as F1; pedicel 1.5 times as long as wide; F1 0.8 times as long as F2, F2 and F3 subequal, the following segments progressively shorter. Last flagellar segment 4.0 times as long as wide and 2.3 times as long as F10.

Mesosoma. About 1.3 times as long as high in lateral view ( Fig. 5g ), including nucha, with short and not dense pubescence. Ratio of length of pronotum medially/laterally: 0.44. Dorsal part of pronotal plate complete, with two distinct and relatively close foveae, but separated by a wide septum. Lateral pronotum finely coriaceous to alutaceous, without lateral carina. Mesoscutum ( Fig. 5h ) about as wide as long, finely coriaceous to alutaceous; anterior grooves absent. Notauli almost complete, but faint before reaching the pronotal margin. Parapsidal grooves inconspicuous. Median groove very short and shallow in a form of short incision. Mesoscutellum ( Fig. 5h ) longer than wide, anteriorly and medially coriaceous, laterally and posteriorly wrinkled; circumscutellar carina absent; scutellar foveae ovate, shallow, not well defined posteriorly, weakly sculptured and separated by a narrow carina. Mesopleuron ( Fig. 5g ) smooth and shiny; little pubescent basally. Metapleural sulcus reaching about 4/5 parts of the mesopleural height. Propodeum faintly pubescent and weakly sculptured; propodeal carinae straight and parallel. Nucha weakly sculptured dorsally and laterally, not sulcate.

Legs. Tarsal claws bidentate, with a basal lobe.

Wings ( Fig. 5g ). Forewings pubescent with short marginal setae, slightly longer than total body length. Radial cell closed, 2.5 times as long as wide; areolet visible, all veins pigmented but pale. Rs+M pale but visible, almost reaching the basal vein. Basal cell with sparsely spaced setae.

Metasoma ( Fig. 5g ). Shorter than head plus mesosoma and about as long as high in lateral view. First metasomal tergum crescent-shaped and smooth. Second metasomal tergum short and free, about 0.4 times as long as the metasomal length and with a dense patch of setae anterolaterally. Third metasomal tergum with a small posterodorsal patch of micropunctures, not dorsodistally incised; subsequent terga, punctate. Prominent part of the hypopygial spine about as long as wide and not projected.

Male. Unknown.

Distribution. USA. Santa Clara County, state of California ( McCracken & Egbert 1922).

Biology. Reared from leaf galls of Andricus confertus McCracken & Egbert, 1922 on Quercus lobata Née ( Quercus section ) ( McCracken & Egbert 1922).

Remarks. Ceroptres confertus was originally described from 2♀ ( McCracken & Egbert 1922: 63). We located and examined 1♀ deposited in CAS.

Figures

FIGURE 3. Female faces of valid species of Ceroptres: a) C. catesbaei (type); b) C. cerri; c) C. clavicornis; d) C. confertus (type); e) C. cornigera (type); f) detail of the median ridge in the lower face of C. cornigera; g) head of C. cornigera in dorsal view; h) C. ensiger; i) C. frondosae (type); j) detail of the median ridge in the lower face of C. frondosae; k) head of C. frondosae in dorsal view.

FIGURE 5. a) Ceroptres catesbaei lateral and b) dorsal habitus (type); c) C. cerri lateral and d) dorsal habitus; e) C. clavicornis lateral and f) dorsal habitus; g) C. confertus lateral and h) dorsal habitus (type).