Lasioptera manilensis Felt

Kolesik, Peter & Gagné, Raymond J., 2020, A review of the gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) of Indonesia: taxonomy, biology and adult key to genera, Zootaxa 4847 (1), pp. 1-82 : 37-38

Lasioptera manilensis Felt

[ Figs 19 a–j]

Lasioptera manilensis Felt, 1918: 288 .

Material examined. Holotype female ( NYSM #a2851, labelled “Type”), reared by L. B. Uichanco from leaf gall on Leea manillensis Walp. (Vitaceae) , Los Baños, Laguna, Luzon, the Philippines, 2-viii-1917, type gall No 18318. Paratype: female, No. 18318 (Uichanco), Mt Makiling, Laguna, Luzon, the Philippines, 21-viii-1917. We examined the female holotype and the female paratype. A male, originally listed in Felt (1918) as a paratype (under No. 18318), was not described and is not in the Felt collection. The holotype is a whole mount, cleared, with all characters present, but most of the ovipositor is inserted inside the dorsolaterally mounted abdomen. The paratype is a cleared remount (by RJG), bearing an additional label reading “C F Baker collection 1927”, and consists of a wing and a laterally mounted abdomen, the two parts are in good condition and mounted under separate coverslips.

Description. Female. Wing 2.1 mm long, 0.9 mm wide; Rs 2/3 wing length, C interrupted at juncture with Rs, R 1 third wing length [ Fig. 19e ]. Flagellomeres 21 on both antennae in the holotype, slightly longer than wide, necks minute, circumfila consisting of two horizonal and one vertical, interconnected bands [ Fig. 19h ]. palpus 3-segmented, first segment as long as wide, second 2x, third 3x as long as first [ Fig. 19i ]. Tarsal claws with strong tooth, empodia as long as claws [ Fig. 19f ]. Abdominal eighth tergite membranous, with pair of anterior trichoid sensilla and, beyond on each side, a lateral group of dense spines [ Fig. 19g ]. Ovipositor: protrusible part nearly bare dorsally, setose ventrally; cerci: fused, cylindrical, broadly rounded apically; basal, glabrous two-thirds with long, curved, spoon-like setae dorsally and shorter, apically broadened setae laterally; distal third setulose, with closely spaced, short, thick setae dorsoapically and scattered, thinner setae elsewhere; pair of discrete, large, setose and setulose, dorsolateral lamellae [ Fig. 19j ].

Remarks. The ovipositor of L. manilensis differs from other congeners in the presence of a pair of dorsolateral lamellae, resembling the lateral lamellae of the Australian Dactylasioptera ( Kolesik & Veenstra-Quah 2008; Veenstra et al. 2018).

Male, pupa, larva unknown.

Biology. Felt (1918) stated that the types were reared from a leaf gall on L. manillensis and referred to Uichanco’s description (1919, gall No. 18318, Figs II-3, IX-1, IX-3 [ Figs 19 a–c]) which we paraphrase as follows. Monothalamous leaf gall; irregularly subspherical and appearing on both sides of the leaf, the superior lobe smaller than inferior and sometimes flushed with carmine, otherwise uniformly lettuce green throughout, smooth, non-pubescent. The original puncture of the ovipositor is usually marked by a small, funnel-shaped, eccentric depression. The inferior lobe is generally carmine, with a thin lettuce green border, the general contour more or less wavy in outline, smooth and non-pubescent. The leaf lamina immediately adjoining the gall is convoluted circumferentially. The wall is hard but brittle, the interior is fleshy, light green and semitranslucent. The larval chamber is located in the center along the longitudinal axis of the gall and curved downward at one end. When the adult is ready to emerge, a circular flap is pushed outwards from the inferior lobe. The superior lobe is 7.5 to 9.5 mm long and 5 mm wide, the inferior lobe 7 to 9.5 mm long and 5.5 to 7 mm wide, and 4 to 5.5 mm thick. DvLR & DvL (1926, gall No. 867, Fig. 622 [ Fig. 19d ]) found the galls to be common on Leea indica (Burm. f.) Merr. in Indonesia. Their description agrees in all particulars with that of Uichanco (1919).

There are two other types of globular leaf galls induced by Cecidomyiidae on L. indica in Indonesia (DvLR & DvL (1926) – a round, hairy gall on the leaf’s upper side (gall No. 868, Fig. 623) and a fusiform, glabrous leaf ribgall visible on both sides of the leaf (gall No. 869, Fig. 624), but the gall makers were not reared.

Geographical distribution. This species occurs in the Philippines ( Uichanco 1919) and Indonesia where it was found in Java and Sumatra (DvLR & DvL, 1926). Java: Tempuran, near Semarang, alt. 100m, v-1909 ; Mt Ungaran , alt. 1000 m, x-1910 ; Tretes, near Mt Welirang , alt. 600 m, vi-1911 ; Pare, near Kediri , alt. 200 m, v-1912 ; Kuripan, near Pekalongan , i-1911 ; Plabuan, near Weleri , ix-1912 , Mt Muria , alt. 400 m, ix-1912 ; Nusa Kambangan island , x-1913 ; Cisokan, near Cibeber , alt. 700 m, xii-1917 ; Sawahan, near Mt Wilis , alt. 500, iv-1918 ; Depok , alt. 100 m, v-1911, vii-1918, x-1919 ; Mt Salak , alt. 1000 m, vi-1918, ix-1919, vii-1920 ; Bogor , alt. 250 m, xii-1918, viii-1919 ; Mt Cibodas, Ciampea, near Bogor , alt. 200 m, iv-1919 , Wanayasa, near Purwakarta , Java, alt. 1000 m, vii-1920 ; Tegalwaru, near Krawang , xii-1923 . Sumatra: Padang , ix-1913 ; Mt Rate, Way Lima, Telokbetung , alt. 400 m, xi- 1921 .

Figures

FIGURES 19a–j. Lasioptera manilensis: a–c, galls on Leea manillensis in the Philippines (Figs. IX-1, IX-2, II-3 of Uichanco (1919)); d, galls on L. indica in Indonesia (Fig. 622 of DvLR & DvL (1926)); e, wing; f, tarsal claw with empodium; g, female postabdomen from tergite 6 (lateral); h, 3rd female flagellomere; i, palpus; j, end of ovipositor (lateral). Arrow indicates dorsolateral lamella.