Neuroterus ambrusi Melika, Stone & Csóka, 1999 : a new synonymy of N. cerrifloralis Müllner, 1901 (Hymenoptera : Cynipidae)

Nota Neuroterus ambrusi Melika, Stone & Csóka, 1999: a new synonymy of N. cerrifloralis Müllner, 1901 (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) Juli Pujade-Villar Departament de Biologia Animal, Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona. Av. Diagonal, 645. 08028 Barcelona e-mail: [email protected] Manuscript received in June 2007 Key words: Cynipidae, Hymenoptera, Neuroterus, Neuroterus ambrusi, Neuroterus cerrifloralis, synonymy, taxonomy. Introduction Recently, Melika et al. (1999) have described a new species from Hungary: Neuroterus ambrusi. Dalla Torre & Kieffer (1910) mentioned an Austrian species, Neuroterus cerrifloralis Müllner, whose gall is similar to the one produced by N. ambrusi. Here in I have studied the type material of Neuroterus cerrifloralis, deposited in the Naturhistorisches Museum Wien, constituted by 14 entomological needles with multiple galls in catkins of Q. cerris, and 4 adult specimens (only one perfectly conserved). After comparing this material with two paratypes (2 males and 2 females) of N. ambrusi deposited in the author’s collection (transferred by Dr. Melika in 1999), I have no doubt that both species are the same. Thus, I conclude that Neuroterus ambrusi Melika, Stone et Csóka, 1999 is a n. syn. of Neuroterus cerrifloralis Müllner, 1901. Neuroterus cerrifloralis Müllner is a sexual form well characterized both by the gall and for the adult morphology (see original description of N. ambrusi in Melika et al., 1999). The gall is a hypertrophy of the anther. The filament converts the gall in pedunculated and the anther is partially visible and is joined to the lateral part of the gall (see Fig. 5 of Melika et al., 1999). Adults are characterized by the following characters: antennae with 14 flagellomeres in females and 15 in males (F1 longer than F2, strongly curved and distally expanded); scutum and scutellum glabrous, smooth and transparent; notauli absent; mesopleura finely striated in the dorsal part; propodeum with no carinae; simple tarsal claws, coxae partially yellowish; femurs yellow in the extremes and brown in the centre. Orsis 22, 2007 85-86 Females of N. cerrifloralis are morphologically close to N. minutulus Giraud, 1859 and N. aggregatus (Wachtl, 1880); however, N. minutulus has the legs completely brown and N. aggregatus completely yellow, differing then from N. cerrifloralis; moreover, in the case of N. aggregatus, vein R1 is longer than vein 2r, while in N. cerrifloralis these veins are of equal length; on the other hand, N. minutulus is an agamic form. Males are similar to N. saliens (Kollar, 1857) but the sculpture of the mesopleura (finely striated in N. cerrifloralis and finely alutaceous in N. saliens) and the relative size of the mesoscutum (as long as wide in N. cerrifloralis, longer than wide in N. saliens) allows differentiating both species. Galls of N. cerrifloralis are different from any other known gall. Studied material Type material of N. cerrifloralis: deposited in the Naturhistorisches Museum Wien, constituted by 14 entomological needles with multiple galls in catkins of Q. cerris, and 4 adult specimens (only one perfectly preserved). LECTOTYPE (female, designated herein) with the following labels: “Collect. G. Mayr” (white label), “Neur. cerrifloralis det. Müllner Type” (handwrited, white label), “cerrifloralis Müllner Typ” (handwrited, white label), “Lectotype Neuroteus cerrifloralis Müllner, 1901 desig. JP-V 2007, det J.P-V 2007” (red label); PARALECTOTYPES: 1male (deteriored), 2 females (deteriored) and 16 catkins with galls mounted in several pins (one deposited in JP-V collection) all of them with similar lavels. Type material examined of N. ambrusi: 2 males and 2 females, deposited in JP-V collection, with the following labels: “Hungary, Tatabánya, ex catkin gall on Q. cerris, G. Stone, 12.05.997” (white label), “Paratype Neuroterus ambrusi Melika desig G. Melika 997” (red label). Acknowledgements I am very grateful to Manuela Vizek (Naturhistorisches Museum Wien, Austria) for sending me the type material of Neuroterus cerrifloralis and to George Melika (Systematic Parasitoid Laboratory Plant Protection and Soil Conservation, Tanakajd, Hungary) fot the paratypes of Neuroterus ambrusi. I also are very grateful to my friends Josep Santamaría and Jordi Paretas-Martínez for helping me with the English spelling and to Jordi Paretas-Martínez for their criticism. References Dalla Torre, K. W.; Kieffer, J. J. 1910. Cynipidae. Das Tierreich. Friedlander & Sohn, 24. Berlin. Melika, G.; Stone, G. H.; Csóka, G. 1999. Description of an oak gall-wasp, Neuroterus ambrusi sp. n. (Hymenoptera, Cynipidae) from Hungary. Acta Zoologica Academiae Acientiarum Hungaricae 45: 335-343. 86 Orsis 22, 2007 J. Pujade-Villar