Gonatocerus (Cosmocomoidea) triguttatus Girault, 1916

Triapitsyn, Serguei V., Huber, John T., Logarzo, Guillermo A., Berezovskiy, Vladimir V. & Aquino, Daniel A., 2010, Review of Gonatocerus (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) in the Neotropical region, with description of eleven new species, Zootaxa 2456, pp. 1-243 : 222-224

Gonatocerus (Cosmocomoidea) triguttatus Girault, 1916

( Figs 472–478 )

Gonatocerus triguttatus Girault 1916: 297 –298. Lectotype female [USNM] (examined), designated by Huber 1988: 55. Type locality: Caroni, Trinidad Island, Trinidad and Tobago.

Gonatocerus triguttus [sic] Girault: Burks 1979: 1026.

Gonatocerus (Gonatocerus) triguttatus triguttatus Girault : De Santis 1979: 367 (catalog).

Gonatocerus triguttatus Girault : Huber 1988: 55 –57 (lectotype designation, redescription, diagnosis, distribution); Yoshimoto 1990: 41 (list, ater species group); De Santis & Fidalgo 1994: 125 (catalog); Triapitsyn & Phillips 2000: 201 –202 (distribution, first known host record); Triapitsyn, Bezark et al. 2002: 40 (distribution, host associations); Triapitsyn, Hoddle et al. 2002: 654 (distribution, host associations); Logarzo et al. 2004: 486 (distribution, host associations); Irvin & Hoddle 2004: 504–509 (biology); Irvin & Hoddle 2005a: 391 –399 (biology); Irvin & Hoddle 2005b: 204 –213 (biology); de León 2005: 298–300 (molecular data on specimens from Texas, USA); Triapitsyn et al. 2006: 63 (molecular data); Triapitsyn 2006a: 22–24 (taxonomic history, diagnosis, distribution, host associations); Irvin et al. 2006: 359 –373 (larval morphology, competition studies); de León et al. 2006a: 42 (molecular data); de León et al. 2006d: 54 (molecular data); de León et al. 2006e: 57–58 (molecular data); de León & Morgan 2006: 61 (molecular data); Pilkington & Hoddle 2007a: 1 –7 (biology); Pilkington & Hoddle 2007b: 9 –14 (predictions on performance as biological control agent); de León & Morgan 2007: 83 (molecular data); de León et al. 2008: 99, 104–105 (molecular data).

Material examined. MEXICO. BAJA CALIFORNIA SUR, 10 km N of La Paz, 28.x.1983, J.D. Pinto [1 ♀, BMNH] . YUCATÁN, Uxmal , 28.vii.1984, G. Gordh [1 ♀, UCRC] . TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO. Trinidad Island, Mitan , i.1915, F.W. Urich (“ Bred from egg-mass of leafhopper ”) [5 ♀, BMNH] .

Redescription. See Huber (1988).

Diagnosis. Gonatocerus (Cosmocomoidea) triguttatus is a member of the ater subgroup of the ater species group. Its main distinguishing features are as follows: head and mesosoma of female generally yellow, gaster light yellow with brown bands on terga ( Fig. 474 ); mesonotum of male slightly darker, with light brown or brown areas; female antenna ( Fig. 472 ) with mps present on all funicle segments; propodeum ( Fig. 473 ) with submedian carinae thick, distinct, extending to its anterior margin; wings hyaline, forewing ( Figs 475 , 477 ) with cubital row of setae complete, extending to base of marginal vein. Also illustrated here are the male antenna ( Fig. 476 ) and genitalia ( Fig. 478 ).

Gonatocerus triguttatus is closely related to G. (Cosmocomoidea) uat Triapitsyn and G. (Cosmocomoidea) ashmeadi Girault (see cladogram in Triapitsyn et al. 2006), both of which have a dark brown mesosoma in both sexes; it differs genetically from another closely related and morphologically very similar South American species G. (Cosmocomoidea) metanotalis (Ogloblin) (de León 2005; de León et al. 2006e), from which it can be separated by the presence of at least 1 (usually 2) mps on F1 of the female antenna (none in G. metanotalis ).

Distribution. NEOTROPICAL: Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, and Trinidad and Tobago (Triapitsyn 2006a). NEARCTIC: Mexico, and USA (California, Florida, Texas) (Triapitsyn 2006a).

Introduced into California against Homalodisca vitripennis (Germar) , initially from Tamaulipas, Mexico, and then from Texas and established there ( Morgan et al. 2000; Morgan et al. 2002; Triapitsyn, Bezark et al. 2002; Pilkington et al. 2005; Triapitsyn 2006a).

Hosts. Homalodisca liturata Ball (under laboratory conditions and also likely in the field following introduction into southern California), H. vitripennis (Germar) , Oncometopia clarior (Walker) , O. nigricans (Walker) , Oncometopia sp., and Pseudometopia amblardii (Signoret) or P. phalaesia (Distant) (Cicadellidae) (Triapitsyn 2006a).

Figures

FIGURES 472 – 475. Gonatocerus (Cosmocomoidea) triguttatus ♀ (from colony of Tamaulipas, Mexico, origin – California Department of Food and Agriculture Mt. Rubidoux Field Station, Riverside, California, USA): 472, antenna; 473, dorsellum, propodeum, and petiole; 474, mesosoma and metasoma; 475, forewing.

FIGURES 476 – 478. Gonatocerus (Cosmocomoidea) triguttatus ♂ (from colony of Tamaulipas, Mexico, origin – California Department of Food and Agriculture Mt. Rubidoux Field Station, Riverside, California, USA): 476, antenna; 477, forewing; 478, genitalia.