Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)

Family: Cynipidae | Genus: Andricus
Detachable: integral
Color: green
Texture: pubescent, hairy
Abundance:
Shape: globular
Season: Spring
Related:
Alignment: integral
Walls: thin
Location: petiole, upper leaf, lower leaf, leaf midrib, leaf edge
Form:
Cells: monothalamous
Possible Range:i
Common Name(s):
Synonymy:
Pending...
Slide 1 of 4
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)
image of Andricus highlandensis (sexgen)

New species of Nearctic oak gall wasps (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae, Cynipini)

Andricus highlandensis Melika, Nicholls & Stone, sp. nov.

Diagnosis. Galls resemble those of A. quercusutriculus (Bassett, 1881); however, galls of A. highlandensis develop on Q. geminata while A. quercusutriculus is found on Q. alba, Q. chapmani and Q. stellata. Such host specificity at the level of oak section is typical of Nearctic oak gall wasps, with species galling section Virentes oaks (including Q. geminata) never attacking oaks in section Quercus s.s. (Abrahamson et al. 1998a,b, 2003) and vice versa.

Gall (Fig 158). Small rounded integral unilocular leaf gall, blister-like, 2.5–4 mm diameter (n = 50); most often develops on young and incompletely expanded leaves. Gall can be found anywhere on the leaf including the margin, petiole (often stopping leaf development) or end of leaf blade; commonly causes distortion of the leaf; green, covered in slight pale pubescence; very thin walled, with a spacious internal airspace in which the free-feeding larva develops. Old galls can persist on the leaves through the whole year.

Biology. Only a sexual generation is known, which induces galls on Q. geminata. The galls begin to develop in early April on unfolded young leaves. They mature very quickly and the adults beginning to emerge from late April–May.

Distribution. USA, Florida, Highlands Co. (Lake Placid, Archbold Biological Station), Martin Co. (Jonathan Dickinson State Park).

- George Melika, James Nicholls, Warren Abrahamson, Eileen Buss, Graham Stone: (2021) New species of Nearctic oak gall wasps (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae, Cynipini)©


Further Information:
Pending...

See Also:
iNaturalist logo
BugGuide logo
Google Scholar logo
Biodiversity Heritage Library logo