Synergus coniferae Ashmead, 1885

Lobato-Vila, Irene & Pujade-Villar, Juli, 2021, The genus Synergus Hartig (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Synergini) in the New World: a complete taxonomic revision with a key to species, Zootaxa 4906 (1), pp. 1-121 : 33-35

Synergus coniferae Ashmead, 1885

( Figure 10 )

Synergus coniferae Ashmead, 1885 . Trans. Am. Entomol. Soc. 12: 301. Type material: USNM.

Type material (examined). LECTOTYPE ♂ with the following labels: ‘Jacknsville, Fla.’ (white label) / ‘Collection Ashmead’ (white label) / ‘ Type No. 2834 U.S. N.M.’ (red label) / ‘ Synergus coniferae Ashm. ’ (white label with a black frame, handwritten) / ‘USNMENT 00802002’ (white label, QR code) / ‘ Lectotype ♀ Synergus coniferae Ashmead, 1885 , IL-V desig-2017’ (red label). PARALECTOTYPES (1♂ & 10♀) with the following labels: ‘Jacknsville, Fla.’ (white label) / ‘Collection Ashmead’ (white label) / ‘USNMENT 00960009’ (white label, QR code) / ‘ Paralectotype ♂ Synergus coniferae Ashmead, 1885 , IL-V desig-2019’ (red label) (1♂); ‘Jacknsville, Fla.’ (white label) / ‘Type’ (orange label, handwritten) / ‘Collection Ashmead’ (white label) / ‘ Paratype No. 2834 U.S. N.M.’ (red label) / ‘ Synergus coniferae Ashm. ♀ ’ (white label, handwritten) / ‘ Paralectotype ♀ Synergus coniferae Ashmead, 1885 , IL-V desig-2019’ (red label) (4♀); ‘Jacknsville, Fla.’ (white label) / ‘Collection Ashmead’ (white label) / ‘ Paratype No. 2834 U.S. N.M.’ (red label) / ‘ Synergus coniferae Ashm. ’ (white label, handwritten) / ‘ Paralectotype ♀ Synergus coniferae Ashmead, 1885 , IL-V desig-2019’ (red label) (6♀).

Diagnosis. Along with S. bellus (see above), S. coniferae can be distinguished from other species from the New World by having the mesoscutum covered with widely spaced transversal carinae with interspaces finely alutaceous or smooth, glossy. It is also characterized by having the mesopleuron entirely sculptured, with the speculum finely striated, apparently almost smooth; hyaline wings and radial cell of fore wing short, about 2.2 times as long as wide; POL longer than OOL; and notauli complete, reaching the posterior margin of pronotum, but less impressed anteriorly. Synergus coniferae differs from S. bellus by having female antenna with 14 segments (13 in S. bellus ); F1 as long as F 2 in females ( Fig. 10b ), 1.3 times as long as F 2 in males (1.7 in females, 2.2 in males of S. bellus ); gena not broadened behind eye ( Fig. 10a ) (slightly broadened in S. bellus ); POL about 2.0 times as long as OOL, OOL 1.4 times as long as diameter of lateral ocelli ( Fig. 10a ) (POL 1.6 times as long as OOL, OOL 2.0 times as long as diameter of lateral ocelli in S. bellus ); and circumscutellar carina well defined, somewhat upturned ( Fig. 10c ) (weak and not well defined in S. bellus ), among others (see the identification key).

Redescription

FEMALE. Length. Body length 2.3–2.5 mm (n = 11).

Color ( Fig. 10 ). Rufous. Head rufous, with some darker areas around the ocelli. Antenna testaceous. Mesosoma, including tegulae, rufous. Metasoma rufous, darker posteriorly. Legs rufous. Wings hyaline, veins brown.

Head. In frontal view trapezoid, 1.2 times as wide as high, gena not broadened behind eye. Face faintly pubescent, lower face with striae radiating from clypeus. Clypeus indistinct, ventral margin slightly projected over mandibles. Malar space about 0.7 times as long as height of eye. Anterior tentorial pits visible; pleurostomal and epistomal sulcus absent. Transfacial line slightly longer than height of eye. Toruli situated mid-height of eye; distance between torulus and eye longer than diameter of torulus; distance between toruli shorter than diameter of toruli. Frons ( Fig. 10a ) finely coriaceous, glabrous and shining, with small scattered punctures; frontal carinae very narrow, branched, not reaching lateral ocelli. Head in dorsal view is about 2.0 times as wide as long. Vertex ( Fig. 10a ) finely coriaceous, glabrous and shining, with small scattered punctures. POL: OOL: LOL = 9.5: 5: 5 and diameter of lateral ocelli, 3.5. Occiput finely coriaceous, with small scattered punctures.

Antenna. 14-segmented; filiform, not broadened apically; pubescence dense and short. Scape plus pedicel as long as F1; pedicel about 1.7 times as long as wide; F1, F2 and F3 subequal; the following segments progressively shorter. Last flagellar segment about 3.0 times as long as wide and almost 2.0 times as long as F11.

Mesosoma. About 1.2 times as long as high in lateral view, including nucha, with short and not dense pubescence ( Fig. 10b ). Ratio of length of pronotum medially/laterally: 0.41. Pronotal plate indistinct. Lateral pronotum wrinkled; lateral carina absent, lateral margins of pronotum rounded seen from above. Mesoscutum ( Fig. 10c ) about 1.3 times as wide as long, with strong and spaced carinae, interspaces finely alutaceous to smooth; anterior parallel lines inconspicuous; notauli complete but less visible in the anterior 1/3 due to the carinae; median mesoscutal line absent; parapsidal lines well impressed, narrow, reaching tegulae. Mesoscutellum ( Fig. 10c ) rounded, about as long as wide, strongly carinated to wrinkled; circumscutellar carina visible and well defined, somewhat upturned; scutellar foveae almost inconspicuous, very shallow and somewhat sculptured, not well defined posteriorly. Mesopleuron ( Fig. 10b ) strongly striated basally, finely reticulated anteriorly and with the speculum almost smooth, just with some fine striae. Metapleural sulcus reaching about 3/4 of mesopleural height. Propodeum pubescent and weakly sculptured; propodeal carinae slightly curved and parallel. Nucha sulcate dorsally and laterally.

Legs. Tarsal claws with a small basal lobe.

Wings. Fore wing pubescent with short marginal setae, shorter than mesosoma plus metasoma ( Fig. 10b ). Radial cell closed, about 2.2 times as long as wide; areolet visible, but basal vein inconspicuous. Rs+M inconspicuous, not reaching the basal vein. Basal cell with sparsely spaced setae.

Metasoma. Longer than head plus mesosoma and about 1.3 times as long as high in lateral view ( Fig. 10b ). First metasomal segment sulcate dorsally and laterally. Syntergum smooth, anterolateral pubescence composed of a few setae and posteriorly without micropunctures, or at least with an incomplete narrow band; not dorsodistally incised, pointed. Hypopygial spine almost 3.0 times as long as wide and with a few lateral setae; without apical setae.

MALE. Similar to female, except for the following: body length 2.0 mm (n = 1). Antenna 15-segmented; F1 about 1.3 times as long as F2; F1 long, slightly curved, medially incised, strongly broadened apically and not broadened basally. Metasoma clearly shorter than head plus mesosoma. Body somewhat darker.

Distribution. USA: Florida ( Ashmead 1885).

Biology. Reared from galls of Callirhytis quercusventricosa (Bassett, 1864) (= Cynips conifera Ashmead, 1881 ) ( Ashmead 1885), on oaks of Lobatae section ( Pénzes et al. 2012).

Remarks. Synergus coniferae was described from ‘numerous specimens’ ( Ashmead 1885: 301). We located and examined 1♂ and 11♀ belonging to the type series deposited in USNM. A lectotype has herein been designated.

The host plant is not mentioned in the original description, however, C. quercusventricosa is found in association with three oaks of the Lobatae section ( Burks 1979: 1106): Q. ilicifolia , Q. imbricaria , and Q. phellos .

Figures

FIGURE 10. Synergus coniferae (lectotype, USNMENT 00802002): a) head in anterodorsal view; b) lateral habitus; c) mesosoma in dorsal view.