Hyperomyzus (Neonasonovia) pullatus Hall & Garraway, 2009

Nieto Nafría, Juan M., Hidalgo, Nicolás Pérez, García-Tejero, Sergio, López Ciruelos, Sara I. & Durante, M. Pilar Mier, 2017, Contribution to the knowledge of North-American species Hyperomyzus subgenus Neonasonovia (Aphididae, Aphidinae, Macrosiphini), Zootaxa 4294 (2), pp. 241-255 : 251-254

Hyperomyzus (Neonasonovia) pullatus Hall & Garraway, 2009

Apterous viviparous female is the only morph previously recorded. The type specimens were collected on Eupatorium sp. in Jamaica; the species is also known in Costa Rica ( Hall & Garraway , 2009; Blackman & Eastop, 2016).

Studied specimens of H. (N.) pullatus sensu stricto (specimens collected on plants of genera Eupatorium , Ageratina , Bidens and Galinsoga ). Costa Rica: Chirripó National Park , on Eupatorium sp., at 2200 m, 11-II-1983, 4 apt, and at 3200 m, 13-II-1983, 4 apt, Martin leg. & det., Natural History Museum and Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle collections . Jamaica: Blue Mountain Peak Trail , on Eupatorium sp. 21-III-2 0 0 4 or 23-I-2003 [on the slide label and in the published description, respectively], 5 apt (types); Hall leg., Hall & Garraway det. Natural History Museum collection . Mexico: Ciudad de Mexico [state], “route Cuernava, 2800 m ” [probably road 95, near San Miguel Topilejo ], on Bidens sp., 21-IX-1979 , Remaudière leg., 4 apt; West of Mexico City, road 95, 2600 m [possibly near San Miguel Topilejo], on “ E. ageratifolium ” [from Remaudière’s slide labels, currently (from Flann , 2009) Ageratina havanensis ], 26-IX-1989 , Remaudière leg., 55 apt & 4 al; Villa Coapa, on G. parviflora , 1981, Peña leg., 6 apt; Mexico [state], “route à Presa Itúrbide, 2900 m ” [probably road 3, near Santa Maria Mazatla ], on Eupatorium sp. and unidentified Asteraceae , 5-IV-1981 , Remaudière leg. & det., respectively 2 apt and 1 apt; Veracruz, Cumbres de Maltrata , 2900 m, on Eupatorium sp., 28-IV-1979 , Remaudière leg., 19 apt & 1 al; all Mexican specimens: Remaudière (to genus) and Nieto Nafría det., and Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle collection.

Other studied specimens (specimens caught on Simsia , on other Asteraceae or on Alchemilla [ Rosaceae ]): Mexico, Aguas Calientes, San Francisco de los Romo , on unidentified composite and on Simsia sp., 9-X-1980, respectively, 1 al and 32 apt & 4 al ; Ciudad de Mexico [state], Milpa Alta , on Simsia , 30-X-1980, 1 al; Xochimilco, on S. amplexicaulis , 21-IX-1979, 28 apt & 24 al ; Mexico [state], Chapingo, on S. amplexicaulis and on unidentified Asteraceae species, 18-IX-1973, 4 apt & 2 al, and 4 apt, respectively; east of Mexico City on road 190, 2600 m, on unidentified Asteraceae species, 27-IX-1979, 5 al; Popocatepetl volcano North slope 3900 m [possibly near Tlamacas], on Alchemilla procumbens , 6-V-1979, 30 apt & 1 al; Río Frío de Juárez , on Simsia sp., 23-XI-1980, 31 apt & 23 al ; Queretaro, Jalpan de Serra , on unidentified Asteraceae species, 6-X-1980, 1 apt ; Zacatecas, General Enrique Estrada , on Simsia sp., 10-XI-1980, 10 apt & 20 al ; Zacatecas, on Simsia sp., 10-XI-1980, 16 apt & 13 al; all of them Remaudière leg., Remaudière (to genus) and Nieto Nafría det., and Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle collection.

Apterous viviparous females, complementary data from specimens collected on Eupatorium , Bidens and Galinsoga . From Hall & Garraway (2009) body is «Almost entirely sclerotized, dark; […] ( Fig 1 )», specimens studied by us also present extensive dorsal sclerotization, but not all of them are well pigmented. Small marginal tubercles usually present on prothorax and abdominal segments 2 to 5. Quantitative characteristics in table 2.

Alate viviparous females, description from one specimen caught on Ageratina havanensis ( Figure 5 A). Head brown to dark brown, like thorax. Antennae brown to dark brown, segment II with some spinules, distal half of III striated and other segments imbricated. Legs mostly as dark as antennae, and paler than those of H. niger . Marginal tubercles on prothorax and abdomen as in apterae. Abdomen with a pale central part, and with brown marginal sclerites on abdominal segments 2 to 6, large intersegmental sclerites, spiracular sclerites, plus transverse brown individual bands on segments 7 and 8. Siphunculi smooth and as dark as proximal part of femora. Genital plate as dark as siphunculi and darker than anal plate and cauda, which is broader than those of H. niger . Quantitative characteristics in table 3.

Taxonomic comments. Studied specimens that were caught on Eupatorium sp. (including type specimens) or on Ageratina havanesis are indistinguishable from those collected on Bidens sp. and Galinsoga parviflora [henceforth “specimens EABG”]. Specimens caught on Simsia and on unidentified genera of Asteraceae [henceforth “specimens S”] ( Figure 5 B), and those caught on Alchemilla (Rosaceae) [henceforth “specimens A”] are also indistinguishable from specimens EABG from qualitative characteristics. The quantitative (metric and meristic) features of specimens of these three groups are very similar (table 3). A Principal Component analysis including this species with specimens of H. inflatus and H. niger clearly separates these three species. Furthermore, the specimens EABG, the specimens S and the specimens A of H. pullatus occupy an area in the negative sector of PC2, with EABG specimens placed in the middle of S and A specimens ( Figure 6 A). Principal Component analyses of specimens EABG, S and A only ( Figure 6 B), or comparing specimens EABG with specimens S ( Figure 6 C), or specimens EABG with specimens A ( Figure 6 D) corroborate this close, but distinct separation. Two hypothesis are possible to explain these morphometric distributions: (1) there are three taxa involved, species or subspecies, or (2) there is only one species involved that encompasses intraspecific variation, possibly related to adaptations to different host plants. At the moment we accept the second hypothesis, which is supported by the fact that the first axis of Figures 6 A and 6B, which discriminates between (left to right) the specimens S, the specimens EABG and the specimens A, is strongly (negatively, r <- 0.257 in all cases) correlated with the body length and other lengths usually correlated with it, e.g.: antennal segments, hind femur, second segment of hind tarsi, siphunculi and cauda, and the body size may be influenced by differences in host plant nutritional quality. In addition any characteristic or group of characteristics permits us to differentiate the specimens unequivocally. Perhaps the first hypothesis is correct; but to test it, host transfer and DNA sequencing studies would be necessary, which cannot be done with museum material.

Other comments. This species is fairly widely distributed from central and eastern Mexico (states of Ciudad de Mexico, Mexico and Vera Cruz; and perhaps Aguas Calientes, Queretaro and Zacatecas) to Costa Rica, plus Jamaica.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Hyperomyzus (Neonasonovia) nabali; A, B, apterous viviparous females, showing variation in sclerotization and pigmentation; C, alate viviparous female; D, oviparous female; E, oviparous hind tibia. Scale bar: 1 mm.

FIGURE 5. Hyperomyzus (Neonasonovia) pullatus, alate viviparous females. A, from Ageratina havanesis; B, from Simsia amplexicaulis. Scale bar: 1 mm.

FIGURE 6. Principal Components analyses of apterous viviparous females of native American species of subgenus Neonasonovia with smooth swollen part of siphunculi. A, H. (N.) inflatus, H. (N.) niger and H. (N.) pullatus, collected from Eupatorium, Bidens or Galinsoga [specimens EABG], from Simsia [specimens S] and from Alchemilla [specimens A]; B, specimens EABG, specimens S and specimens A of H. pullatus; C, specimens EABG and S of H. pullatus; D, specimens EABG and A of H. pullatus. ▲: H. (N.) inflatus; □: H. (N.) niger; ♦: H. (N.) pullatus specimens EABG; Δ: H. (N.) pullatus specimens S; Ǫ: H. (N.) pullatus specimens A.