Xyela pumilae 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 : 49-50

Xyela pumilae Blank & Shinohara , sp. nov.

Type locality: Japan, Hokkaido, Kamikawa, Mt. Piyashiri .

Description. Female. Color. Head yellow with black pattern (brown is 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 anteriorly confluent with black postocellar area ( Fig. 66 ). Antennae brown. Mesoscutum black with yellow pattern on medial half of lateral lobes, mesoscutellum with large yellow spot. Abdominal terga dark brown to black, lateral parts of preapical terga, partly distal sternum, valvifer 2 and valvula 3 brown, membranous base of valvula 3 whitish ( Fig. 115 ). Legs mainly pale brown, femora sometimes with brown longitudinal stripes, posterior coxae mainly dark brown to black. Wing membrane, venation and pterostigma brownish infuscate.

Morphology. Fore wing 3.9–4.3 mm long, 2.15 times longer than ovipositor sheath, vein 1m-cu absent and Rs+M 175–275 µm long, 2r-m meeting Rs proximal to furcation of Rs1 and Rs2. Synantennomere 3 590–610 µm long, antennomere 4 150–160 mm long and 4.5–5.0 times longer than wide distally. Article 3 of maxillary palp 450–500 µm long, 1.50–1.65 times longer than scape and distinctly wider than synantennomere 3. OOL: POL = 1.40–1.60: 1. Ovipositor sheath 1.80–2.00 mm long, valvula 3 1.65–1.85 times longer than valvifer 2 and 6.0–6.5 times longer than wide ( Fig. 115 ). Valvula 3 of ovipositor sheath compressed, basally with pale membranous about as long as width of valvula, dorsal outline preapically sloping downwards to round apex, distally with sensilla field exposed and directed caudally, bearing 4 setae. Ovipositor almost straight and compressed. Valvula 1 with aulax terminating distally, ventral edge sloping up to tip, with ca 14 oblique closely spaced annuli in distal quarter, without serrulae, olistether with 4 setae. Left and right valvulae 2 fused along dorsal edge in basal half. Valvula 2 with smooth dorsal margin, tapering in distal half, pale and evenly sclerotized, in distal 0.4 with single scattered sensilla campaniformia, in distal 0.05 with 4 indistinct oblique annuli. Posterior tibia 0.85–0.95 mm long, all claws without subapical tooth.

Male. Color. Similar to female (see Fig. for color pattern of head). Supraantennal furrows with small black stripes, kidney-shaped spots free. Hypopygium brown.

Morphology. Fore wing ca 3.8 mm long, Rs+M 200–230 µm long, 2r-m meeting Rs proximal to furcation of Rs1 and Rs2. Synantennomere 3 ca 710 µm long, antennomere 4 ca 170 µm long and ca 5.0 times longer than wide distally. Article 3 of maxillary palp ca 430 µm long, ca 1.40 times longer than scape and wider than synantennomere 3. OOL: POL = ca 1.40: 1. Longitudinal apodeme of basiparamere curved, basal portion in lateral position, harpe about as long as wide in lateral view. Lower ergot on valvular very small and in lateral position (seemingly absent). Valviceps ca 1.55–1.60 times longer than wide on medial lobe, oblique lateral lamella distinct, upper edge of proximal lobe of valviceps almost parallel to longitudinal axis of valviceps, 0.24–0.25 times as long as valviceps and 0.70–0.75 times as high as medial lobe, excision on lower edge ca 0.23 as deep as width of medial lobe, valviceps on medial lobe 1.15–1.20 times wider than on distal lobe, 2 distal flagella present, tip of longer flagellum reaching 0.55–0.65 width of distal lobe ( Fig. 148 ). Valviceps with distinct median longitudinal sclerotization present, upper edge of medial lobe round and strikingly protruding, with 8–10 cone-like sensilla along upper edge and scattered on lateral surface, upper edge between medial and distal lobe with few short setae. Posterior tibia ca 0.95 mm long, all claws without subapical tooth.

Type material: Holotype ♀: “ Mt. Piyashiri, Kamikawa , Hokkaido, 23.VI.1990, [leg.] A. Shinohara ”; [red:] “ Holotype ♀ Xyela pumilae spec. nov. det. S. M. Blank 2000”. NSMT . Paratypes: 2♀ 1♂, DEI, NSMT .

Etymology. The species is named according to the strongly supposed host plant, Pinus pumila .

Host plant. Ο Pinus pumila Regel.

Geographic distribution. Japan (Hokkaido), map ( Fig. 9 ).

Remarks. This is the only Japanese Xyela of the julii group with conspicuously brownish infuscate wings. Additionally, other Japanese species have the dark pattern of the frons either more or less brown ( X. variegata ) or the dark pattern is more extensive ( X. tecta ). See also remarks under X. julii .

Xyela pumilae is the only representative of the X. julii group for which a host association with Pinus (‘ Strobus ’) can be demonstrated. On Mt. Piyashiri A. Shinohara swept the two females from P. pumila . As this is the only pine species at the collection site, this species is believed to be associated with it. Pinus pumila is widely distributed in northeastern Asia (Russian Far East, North Korea, Sakhalin, Kuril Islands, Japan) with a large altitudinal amplitude (300–3,700 m; Kindel 1995), but X. pumilae has so far only be found on the Japanese island Hokkaido.

Figures

FIGURE 9. Records of the East Asian Xyela species supposedly feeding on Pinus (Strobus) species: X. kamtshatica (21 specimens from 4 collection sites), X. pumilae (4 specimens from 2 collection sites) and X. sibiricae (8 specimens from 2 collection sites). Additional record of X. kamtshatica by Takeuchi (1938) included for Hokkaido. The rhomb-shaped symbol represents records of X. koraiensis, X. rasnitsyni and X. ussuriensis supposedly feeding on Pinus koraiensis (illustrated separately in Figs 10, 22). Legend for natural distribution of Pinus species: P. koraiensis (solid line, according to Mirov 1967), P. pumila (dotted line) and P.sibirica (dashed line, both combined from Sokolov et al. 1977 and Kremenetski et al. 1998).

FIGURES 66–85. Color pattern of head of Xyela species: X. julii group (part). Legend: HT—holotype; PT—paratype.

FIGURES 105–120. Ovipositor sheaths of Xyela species. All figures at same scale. Legend: HT—holotype; NT—neotype; PT—paratype.

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).