Xyela rasnitsyni Blank & Shinohara, 2013

Blank, Stephan M., Shinohara, Akihiko & Altenhofer, Ewald, 2013, <strong> The Eurasian species of <em> Xyela </ em> (Hymenoptera, Xyelidae): taxonomy, host plants and distribution </ strong>, Zootaxa 3629 (1), pp. 1-106 : 63-64

Xyela rasnitsyni Blank & Shinohara , sp. nov.

Type locality: Russia, Primorskiy Kray, Ussuriysky Reserve .

Description. Female. Color. Head yellow with black pattern (brown usually almost absent): two black stripes along supraantennal furrows meeting black ocellar and postocellar area and black longitudinal spot in middle of frons always present; kidney-shaped spot on vertex confluent with black postocellar area or sometimes leaving indistinct yellow stripe in between ( Fig. 48 ). Antennae brown, paler below. Mesoscutum black or slightly brown or yellow anteriorly on lateral lobes. Abdominal terga brown, lateral parts of preapical terga, partly preapical sterna and valvifer 2 pale brown, valvula 3 dark brown with membranous base whitish ( Fig. 2 , 104 ). Legs pale brown, anterior side of femora usually with darker longitudinal stripes (at least on posterior legs), posterior coxae predominantly dark brown. Wing membrane, venation and pterostigma pale brown.

Morphology. Fore wing 3.5–4.1 mm long, 1.20–1.25 times longer than ovipositor sheath, vein 1m-cu absent and Rs+M 100–200 µm long, 2r-m meeting Rs proximal to furcation of Rs1 and Rs2. Synantennomere 3 590–680 µm long, antennomere 4 150–180 µm long and 4.5–5.5 times longer than wide distally. Article 3 of maxillary palp 400–480 µm long, 1.45–1.65 times longer than scape and distinctly wider than synantennomere 3. OOL: POL = (1.30–)1.40–1.60: 1. Ovipositor sheath (2.8–)3.0– 3.3 mm long, valvula 3 3.5–4.0 times longer than valvifer 2 and 13.5–14.5 times longer than wide ( Fig. 2 , 104 ). Valvula 3 of ovipositor sheath compressed, ca 3 times wider in lateral view than combined width of the valvulae 3 in dorsal view, basally with pale membranous area little longer than width of valvula and distally with very narrow pale margin extending up to about middle of valvula 3, distally narrowing to acicular tip without defined sensilla field, ventral edge distally with 3–4 setae, distal setae shorter than more basal setae. Ovipositor indistinctly evenly curved in the basal 0.7. Valvula 1 of ovipositor compressed, aulax terminating preapically, dorsal edge sloping down and ventral edge sloping up to tip, with 13–14 oblique annuli in distal quarter, without serrulae, olistether most likely without setae ( Fig. 125 ). Valvula 2 with smooth dorsal margin, tapering in distal third, pale and evenly sclerotized, in distal half with single and regularly spaced sensilla campaniformia. Posterior tibia 0.85–0.95 mm long, all claws with delicate subapical tooth.

Male. Color. Similar to female. Dark pattern on face, vertex and clypeus less extensive, e.g., small yellow stripe between kidney-shaped spots and postocellar area usually present ( Fig. 49 ). Antennae pale brown. Mesoscutum at most a little yellow anteriorly on lateral lobes. Abdomen brown, tergum 8 with pale blotch medially, hypopygium dirty yellowish brown.

Morphology. Fore wing 3.0– 3.4 mm long, Rs+M (60–)100–200 µm long, 2r-m meeting Rs proximal to furcation of Rs1 and Rs2. Synantennomere 3 580–740 µm long, antennomere 4 170–210 µm long and 5.5–7.0 times longer than wide distally. Article 3 of maxillary palp 350–400 µm long, 1.30–1.40 times longer than scape and distinctly wider than synantennomere 3. OOL: POL = 1.40–1.60: 1. Longitudinal apodeme of basiparamere curved, basal portion in lateral position ( Figs 153–154 ), harpe 1.15–1.30 longer than wide in lateral view. Lower ergot on valvular stalk present and erect. Valviceps 1.70–1.75 times longer than wide on medial lobe, with indistinct oblique lateral lamella, proximal lobe of penis valve 0.09–0.13 times as long as valviceps and ca 0.90 times as high as medial lobe, excision on lower edge ca 0.30 as deep as width of medial lobe, valviceps on medial lobe 1.60–1.65 times wider than on distal lobe, 2 (exceptionally 3) distal flagella present, tip of longer flagellum reaching 1.05–1.15 width of distal lobe ( Fig. 140 ). Valviceps with median longitudinal sclerotization present, medial lobe conspicuously asymmetric and situated in basal quarter of valviceps, with 7–10 cone-like sensilla along upper edge and scattered cone-like sensilla on lateral surface, upper edge between medial and distal lobe with ca 10 scattered setae. Posterior tibia 0.80–0.85 mm long, all claws with delicate subapical tooth.

Type material: Holotype ♀: “Ussurijskij Res., Primorskii Kray, Russia, 21.–26.V.1994, [leg.] A. Shinohara ”; [red:] “Holotype ♀ Xyela rasnitsyni spec. nov. det. S. M. Blank 2000”. NSMT . Paratypes: 12♀ 15♂, DEI, NSMT, YUIC, ZIN, ZSM .

Etymology. This conspicuous species is dedicated to Alexandr P. Rasnitsyn (Moscow), who contributed and at an age of 80 years still contributes fundamentally to the knowledge in diversity and phylogeny of extant and fossil insects, among them the basal Hymenoptera .

Host plant. Ο Pinus koraiensis Sieb. & Zucc.

Geographic distribution. China (Jilin Province), Russia (Primorskiy Kray), South Korea ( Fig. 22 ).

Remarks. The female of Xyela rasnitsyni shares its sharply pointed tip of valvula 3 with X. helvetica ( Benson, 1961) and X. longula Dalman, 1819 , which are Western Palearctic. However, the latter have article 3 of the maxillary palp shorter than the scape (in X. rasnitsyni 1.45–1.60 times longer than scape), and the valvula 3 straight (slightly bent downwards) and diamond-shaped in cross section (compressed). The male is easily distinguished from other forms occurring in this region by the harpes, which are longer than wide (in other species as long as wide).

In Russia, A.P. Rasnitsyn collected four females from Pinus koraiensis , and at least the specimens from China were collected close to this pine species (E.-J. Fittkau, personal communication, see also X. koraiensis ).

Figures

FIGURE 22. Records of Xyela rasnitsyni (27 specimens from 7 collection sites) and natural distribution of the supposed host plant, Pinus koraiensis (solid line, according to Mirov (1967).

FIGURES 42–65. Color pattern of head of Xyela species: X. curva group, X. rasnitsyni group, X. julii group (part). Legend: HT—holotype; NT—neotype; PT—paratype.

FIGURES 2–5. Measurements and terminology of wing venation (see explanations on pp. 8–10). 2, Xyela rasnitsyni (paratype), ovipositor sheath (embedded in glycerine and therefore valvula 3 a little wider compared to dry, pinned specimens). 3, X. alpigena, penis valve. 4, X. curva, wings. 5, X. lugdunensis (paratype of X. nigroabscondita), fore wing.

FIGURES 95–104. Ovipositor sheaths of Xyela species. All figures at same scale. Legend: HT—holotype; PT—paratype.

FIGURES 121–125. Distal section of ovipositors. 121, Xyela longula. 122, X. alpigena. 123, X. occidentalis (paratype). 124, X. curva. 125, X. rasnitsyni (paratype). Arrowheads in Figs 123–124 indicate preapical small tooth on dorsal edge of valvula 1.

FIGURES 146–156. Penis valves of Xyela species (X. julii group, part), and male external copulatory apparatus of Xyela in ventral and lateral view. 153–154, X. longula (penis valves removed). 155–156, X. curva (penis valves and volsellae removed). Legend: bpa—basiparamere, br—basal ring, gon—gonomacula, har—harpe, lap—lateral apodeme, vol—volsella. Figs 147, 150 and 152 reproduced from Blank et al. (2005).

FIGURES 136–145. Penis valves of Xyela species: X. curva group, X. julii group (part). Figs 138–139 and 141 reproduced from Blank et al. (2005).