Feron bakkeri ( Lyon, 1984 ) Cuesta-Porta & Melika & Nicholls & Stone & Pujade-Villar, 2023

Cuesta-Porta, Victor, Melika, George, Nicholls, James A., Stone, Graham N. & Pujade-Villar, Juli, 2023, Re-establishment of the Nearctic oak cynipid gall wasp genus Feron Kinsey, 1937 (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Cynipini), including the description of six new species, Zootaxa 5366 (1), pp. 1-174 : 34-36

Feron bakkeri ( Lyon, 1984) , comb. nov.

Figs 68–71

Andricus bakkeri Lyon, 1984: 292 , female, gall.

Type material. HOLOTYPE: Asexual female “ Los Angeles, Calif., II.9.58”, “ Q. dumosa ”, “ R. J. Lyon Collection ”, “ Andricus bakkeri Lyon ”, red label “ Holotype ” . PARATYPES (6 asexual females) with the same data as the holotype. The female holotype and the six paratypes are in the collection of the USNM, examined by VC-P. The type was examined based on photos taken by M. Buffington, USNM. Information and pictures of the holotype can be consulted here: http://n 2t.net/ark:/65665/32562b378-0160-44b1-94a5-4136889a738e .

Diagnosis. Asexual females belong to the group of Feron species in which the body is reddish brown; the head is rounded in frontal view, ocelli are not elevated above the frons; inner margins of eyes slightly converging ventrally, the transfacial distance is longer than the height of eye; toruli are located above mid-height of eyes; the eye is less than 3.0× as high as length of the malar space as in F. scutellum (asex), F. stellare (asex), and F. rucklei (asex). However, F. bakkeri has inconspicuous meoscutellar foveae with faintly rugose bottoms like the rest of the mesoscutellar disk; the metasoma is distinctly longer than high; while in the asexual forms of the other species the mesoscutellar foveae are conspicuous, with the bottom smooth, and the metasoma is almost as high as long. The gall is reminiscent of the gall of F. scutellum but is somewhat smaller ( Lyon 1984).

Re-description. Asexual female ( Figs 68–70 ). Head, antenna, mesosoma, legs, metasoma uniformly reddish brown, except dark brown posterior tergum.

Head alutaceous-reticulate, with sparse setae on lower face, slightly broader than high and as broad as mesosoma in frontal view; 2.6× as broad as long in dorsal view. Gena alutaceous-reticulate, not broadened behind eye in frontal view; gena in lateral view 2.0× narrower than transverse diameter of eye in dorsal part and as broad as eye in ventral part. Malar space delicately coriaceous, with delicate striae, malar sulcus absent; eye 2.6× as high as length of malar space. Inner margins of eyes converging ventrally. POL 1.4× as long as OOL, OOL 3.6× as long as diameter of lateral ocellus and slightly shorter than LOL, all ocelli ovate, of same size. Antennal toruli located above mid-height of eyes. Transfacial distance 1.3× as long as height of eye; frons shorter than height of lower face, diameter of antennal torulus 1.7× as long as distance between them, distance between torulus and eye slightly longer than diameter of torulus; lower face delicately coriaceous, with dense white setae; slightly elevated median area and area between toruli delicately coriaceous, with a few setae. Clypeus impressed, flat, rectangular, broader than high, delicately coriaceous, with a few long setae along ventral edge; ventrally rounded, not emarginate and without median incision; anterior tentorial pit rounded, distinct, small; epistomal sulcus distinct, clypeo-pleurostomal line well impressed. Frons, interocellar area, vertex and occiput uniformly alutaceous-reticulate, without striae and setae. Antenna shorter than body, with 12 flagellomeres, pedicel subglobose, slightly longer than broad; F1 1.2× as long as F2 and 1.6× as long as pedicel; F2>F3, F4–F7 subequal in length, F8–F11 slightly shorter, subequal and wider; F12 slightly shorter than F11; placodeal sensilla on F3–F12.

Mesosoma nearly as long as high, with setae. Pronotum glabrous, with delicate short parallel striae along posterior edge, with piliferous points. Mesoscutum uniformly reticulate, slightly longer than broad (greatest width measured across mesoscutum level with base of tegulae). Notaulus complete, distinctly impressed along entire length; posteriorly converging; at posterior end the distance between notauli shorter than distance between notaulus and side of mesoscutum; anterior parallel line indistinct; parapsidal line marked with indistinct, narrow smooth, impressed area; median mesoscutal line absent; parascutal carina broad, reaching notaulus. Mesoscutellum slightly longer than broad, with subparallel sides; disk of mesoscutellum rugose, overhanging metanotum, with sparse setae. Mesoscutellar foveae inconspicuous, faintly rugose bottom, like the rest of the mesoscutellar disk, smoother anteriorly, without central carina. Mesopleuron smooth, alutaceous only on most anterior part; speculum smooth, glabrous, with transverse striae in most anterior part; mesopleural triangle smooth, with a few white setae; dorsal and lateral axillar areas smooth, with white setae; axillula with delicate parallel longitudinal striae; subaxillular bar smooth, glabrous, with subparallel sides, posteriorly shorther than height of metanotal trough; metapleural sulcus reaching mesopleuron at half of its height; upper part of sulcus indistinct; lower part of sulcus delimiting smooth area with dense long white setae. Metascutellum smooth, glabrous, shorter than height of smooth, glabrous ventral impressed area; metanotal trough smooth, with sparse setae; central propodeal area lyre-shaped, smooth, glabrous, without rugae; lateral propodeal carinae distinct, bent outwards in posterior 1/3 of its height; lateral propodeal area smooth, and with long dense white setae with impressed setae points. Nucha with numerous sulci laterally. Tarsal claws with basal lobe.

Fore wing longer than body, hyaline, with cilia on margin, veins brown, radial cell open, 3.0× as long as broad; Rs and R1 nearly reaching wing margin; areolet indistinct. Rs+M indistinct, not reaching basalis.

Metasoma longer than head+mesosoma, slightly longer than high in lateral view; 2nd metasomal tergum extending to 2/3 length of metasoma in dorsal view, with numerous white setae anterolaterally, with rare micropunctures posteriorly; all subsequent terga with micropunctures. Hypopygium with micropunctures, prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium 7.5× as long as broad in ventral view, with long setae ventrally.

Body length 1.3–2.0 mm (n = 3).

Gall ( Fig. 71 ). A monolocular, cup-shaped leaf spangle gall, 3–3.5 mm in height. The larval cell occupies the base of the cup whose margins are collapsed at maturity ( Lyon 1984).

Biology. Only the asexual generation is known, which induces galls on Q. dumosa (section Quercus , subsection Dumosae). The galls appear on the leaves during the early summer until August. At this time the galls are red and contain small larvae. Pupation occurs in late October and early November; adults can be cut out in early December; however, normal emergence takes place in February–March, or even later.

Distribution. USA: California ( Lyon 1984).

Figures

FIGURES 68–71. Feron bakkeri, comb. nov., asexual generation. 68–70, asexual female: 68, habitus, part, lateral view, 69, head, frontal view, 70, head and mesoscutum, dorsal view. (Pictures are taken from USNM Holotype collection http://n2t.net/ ark:/65665/32562b378-0160-44b1-94a5-4136889a738e). 71, galls (image courtesy of J. Gross).