Comparative morphology and biology of terminalinstar larvae of some Eurytoma (Hymenoptera, Eurytomidae) species parasitoids of gall wasps (Hymenoptera, Cynipidae) in western Europe
Author
Gómez, José Francisco
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas (UCM), Departamento de Zoología y Antropología Física, Ciudad Universitaria, 28040 Madrid (Spain) jf. gomez @ bio. ucm. es
Author
Nieves-Aldrey, José Luis
Author
Nieves, María Hernández
Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Evolutiva, c / José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid (Spain) aldrey @ mncn. csic. es
Author
Stone, Graham Nicholas
Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, School of Biological Sciences, The King’s Buildings, West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH 9 3 JT (United Kingdom) graham. stone @ ed. ac. uk
stone@ed.ac.uk
text
Zoosystema
2011
2011-09-30
33
3
287
323
http://dx.doi.org/10.5252/z2011n3a3
journal article
10.5252/z2011n3a3
1638-9387
4546941
Eurytoma robusta
Mayr, 1878
MATERIAL EXAMINED. — Ex
Isocolus scabiosae
form
rogenhoferi
:
Spain
. Guadalajara, Pozo de Guadalajara,
3.X.2004
, J. L. Nieves leg (n = 1).
DESCRIPTION
n = 1; body length
2 mm
; body width
1.2 mm
(
Figs 5G
;
7G
); body short and wide; ratio L/W = 1.38; ventral margin of body segments convex; anterodorsal protuberances present from second thoracic segment to the seventh abdominal and not protruding beyond the dorsal margin of body segments (
Fig. 7G
).
Antero-medial setae of the antennal area situated slightly below the antennae; antero-medial setae of vertex relatively high on the upper face, closer to the anterior margin of vertex than to the antennae (
Fig. 9F
); ratios SA/LAA = 0.29 and SA/DAV = 1.18; dorsal-labral setae as long as clypeal setae; ventral margin of clypeus indistinct; labrum with slight divisions limited to apical part of labrum; the five medial lobes are not well differentiated; maxillary palps conspicuous (
Fig. 12A
).
Mandibles with two teeth, exposed in part, with the tip of the first tooth visible (
Fig. 12A
); ratio L/W 1T = 2.08; outer margin of first tooth strongly convex; its tip moderately recurved; apex of the second tooth straight, directed upwards in the same direction as the first tooth, and more or less acute; inner margin of mandible, from the base of second tooth, more or less straight and not interrupted (
Fig. 13G
).
BIOLOGY
This species has been recorded as a common ectoparasitoid of some galling tephritid fly species in heads of
Centaurea
and stems of
Cirsium
(Asteraceae)
. It is not clear whether it is a parasitoid of the cynipid gall species
Isocolus scabiosae
(Giraud, 1859)
form
rogenhoferi
Wachtl, 1880
as well, which occupies similar habitats. We have reared this species from heads of
Centaurea scabiosa
L. (
Fig. 14J
) containing both cynipid and tephritid galls.
Varley (1937)
describes
E. robusta
as being partially phytophagous after consuming the host larva.
Johannesen & Seitz (2003)
also studied larval distributions of
Eurytoma robusta
in galls of the tephritid gall fly
Urophora cardui
Linnaeus, 1758
.
REMARKS
Eurytoma robusta
is one of the few eurytomid species associated with cynipid communities whose larva has already been thoroughly described, by
Varley (1937)
. Our diagnosis provides additional data.