Research Article |
Corresponding author: Valéria Cid Maia ( maiavcid@acd.ufrj.br ) Academic editor: Ângelo Pinto
© 2019 Valéria Cid Maia, Lazaro Araújo de Oliveira.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Maia VC, de Oliveira LA (2019) A new species of Clinodiplosis (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) causing galls on Banisteriopsis membranifolia (Malpighiaceae), an endemic plant in Brazil. Zoologia 36: 1-5. https://doi.org/10.3897/zoologia.36.e21481
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Clinodiplosis quartelensis sp. nov. (holotype male in
Atlantic Forest, gall, insect-plant interaction, Malpighiaceae.
Banisteriopsis C.B.Rob. ex Small is one of the most diverse genera of Malpighiaceae. It is well represented in Brazil, where 47 species of 58 from the New World are found (
Clinodiplosis is a cosmopolitan genus with 107 species (
The genus is characterized by the presence of occipital process; four–segmented palpi; wings with 1–3 mm long, R5 joining C beyond the wing apex, Rs weaker than R1, but evident; variable tarsal claws (toothed or simple, and curved near basal third or beyond), empodia usually reaching the curve of the claws or sometimes shorter; quadrate or secondarily lobed or acute male cerci; aedeagus usually elongate and tapering to the apex or sometimes large and bulbous; ovipositor short, barely protrusible; and female cerci separate (
The objective of this study is to describe a new species of Clinodiplosis associated with Banisteriopsis membranifolia, contributing to the knowledge of its diversity in the Neotropics.
The field work was done in the municipality of Quartel São João, State of Minas Gerais (Southeastern Brazil) at 45°43’59”W, 19°10’13”S, 924 m of altitude. This area harbors threatened species of birds (
Several specimens of Banisteriopsis membranifolia were found in March, 2009. Reproductive branches (with flowers and fruits) were collected, pressed and dried. The botanical species was identified by MSc Andreia Fonseca Silva and a voucher specimen deposited in the “Herbário da Empresa de Pesquisa Agropecuária de Minas Gerais”, Belo Horizente, Brazil (PAMG/EPAMIG: 56333).
Galled branches were removed from the host plant and transported in plastic bags to laboratory. Some samples were dissected to obtain the galling larvae and others were kept in plastic pots covered by a fine-meshed screen to obtain adults and pupal exuviae.
The specimens were first preserved in 70% ethanol, then mounted on microscope slides, following the methods outlined by
The genus was identified based on the key of
Flagellomere 12 with apical process, setulose in both sexes; tarsal claws simple and curved beyond basal third; male cerci secondarily lobed; gonostyli 8–9 times as long as wide; aedeagus elongate, tapering to the apex and constricted subapically; pupa with antennal basis well projected, cervical sclerite bilobed at the middle of the superior margin, abdominal dorsal spines absent, larva with spatula with long stalk and four pairs of setose terminal papillae.
Holotype male. Brazil, Minas Gerais State: Quartel São João municipality, III.2009, L. Oliveira leg. Paratypes, same locality, data and collector: 3 males, 9 females, 7 pupal exuviae and 15 larvae. All deposited in
Fusiform and cylindrical body; 2.60–3.85 mm long (n = 11). Integument rough. Spatula (Fig.
Body length: 3.25–3.95 mm (n = 6). Head (Fig.
Body length: 2.90–3.40 mm in male (n = 3), 3.40–4.30 mm in female (n = 9). Head (Fig.
Thorax. Wings: length: 2.15–2.55 mm in male (n = 5), 3.05–3.35 mm in female (n = 8); venation: R1 2.22–3.04 times shorter than wing length, Rs evanescent, R5 curved, joining C beyond wing apex, M3 evanescent; CuA forked. Scutum with 4 longitudinal rows of setae with a few scales intermixed, the 2 dorsocentral rows broadest anteriorly and as single row on posterior half of sclerite, the 2 lateral rows in double row continuous along length of scutum. Scutellum with abundant setae, absent mesally. Anepisternum with a few scales dorsally; anepimeron with 7–14 setae (n = 5); other pleura bare. Tarsal claws simple, bent beyond midlength, gradually attenuate to apex; empodium short, not reaching bent in claws (Fig.
Male abdomen (Fig.
Male terminalia (Fig.
Female abdomen (Fig.
Ovipositor barely protrusible, female cerci (Fig.
Clinodiplosis quartelensis sp. nov. (1–2) larvae in ventral view: (1) spatula, sternal and lateral papillae, scale bar 0.03 mm; (2) 8–9th abdominal segments, scale bar 0.10 mm; (3) pupa: cephalic region and prothoracic spiracle, scale bar 0.20 mm; (4–11) Adults: (4) male head in frontal view, scale bar 0.20 mm; (5) male flagellomere 5, scale bar 0.05 mm; (6) female flagellomere 5, scale bar 0.05 mm; (7) male hindleg, tarsal claw and empodium, scale bar 0.0 2mm; (8) male 6–8th abdominal segments in lateral view, scale bar 0.10 mm; (9) male terminalia in dorsal view, scale bar 0.05 mm; (10) female 6–8th abdominal segments in lateral view, scale bar 0.10 mm; (11) ovipositor in lateral view, scale bar 0.05 mm.
(Fig.
The name quartelensis refers to the locality where the specimens from the new species were collected.
Clinodiplosis includes adults with simple or toothed tarsal claws, curved at their basal third or beyond midlength. The new species has simple claws, curved beyond midlength. Only five Neotropical species exhibit simultaneously both characters, i.e.: C. alternantherae Gagné, 2004, C. bellum Urso-Guimarães & Carmo-Neto, 2015, C. cattleyae Molliard, 1903, C. conica Oliveira & Maia, 2008 and C. eupatorii (Felt, 1911).
Among those five species, only C. bellum and C. quartelensis have the male cercus secondarily lobed. Other resemblances between these species are: the setulose apical process in the 12th female flagellomere; the deeply bilobed male hypoproct with convergent lobes; the elongate, tapering to the apex and constricted subapically aedeagus; the obtuse mesobasal lobe of the gonocoxites; pupa lacking dorsal spines on abdominal segments; and larva with no corniform papillae. Adults of both species can be distinguished by the length and proportions among the segments of the palpus (longer with crescent segments in C. quartelensis sp. nov.), wing venation (presence of M4 only in C. quartelensis sp. nov.), and level of sclerotization of male 8th tergite (sclerotized only in the new species). Furthermore, the pupa of C. quartelensis sp. nov. differs from that of C. bellum mainly by the superior margin at the middle of cephalic dorsal plate narrow bilobed (wide with the entire superior margin at the middle in C. bellum). In addition the spatula is missing in C. bellum.
The host plant, Banisteriopsis membranifolia, is an endemic plant in Brazil. Considering that 92% of the Brazilian fauna of Cecidomyiidae are monophagous (
The authors are grateful to the Andréia F. Silva (Epamig, Herbário PAMG, Empresa de Pesquisa Agropecuária de Minas Gerais) for the plant identification, and Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento Científico for financial support (Grant 301481/2017-2).