Neuroandricus Pujade-Villar, Cuesta-Porta & Melika 2024, new genus
Creators: name: Pujade-Villar, Juli
name: Savall-Roig, Gabriel
name: Equihua-Martínez, Armando
name: Estrada-Venegas, Edith G.
name: Barrera-Ruiz, Uriel M.
name: Cibrián-Tovar, David
name: Vera-Ortiz, Alexis
name: Silvia Romero-Rangel
name: Cuesta-Porta, Víctor
name: Cazorla-Vila, Júlia
name: Melika, George
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Hymenoptera
Eurytomidae
Neuroandricus

description: Neuroandricus Pujade-Villar, Cuesta-Porta & Melika, new genus
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: CF3B4295-CB5E-460F-B2EA-1AF0C76EF6A5
(Figs 1–4)
Type species: Neuroandricus pustulatus Pujade-Villar, Cuesta-Porta & Melika sp. nov., designated herein.
Etymology. Resembles two cynipid genera, Neuroterus Hartig, 1840 and Andricus Hartig, 1840: the structure and the form of the head resembles the genus Neuroterus, while the mesosoma resembles Andricus (see Diagnosis below).
Gender: Masculine.
Diagnosis. The head resembles the genus Neuroterus and the mesosoma most closely resembles Andricus, but, unlike both these genera, the ventral spine of the hypopygium exhibits an apical tuft of setae. Currently, there are 15 genera with an apical tuft of setae on the ventral spine of the hypopygium. Neuroandricus gen. nov. differs from Belonocnema Mayr, 1881, Trigonaspis Hartig, 1840, and Sphaeroteras Ashmead, 1897 by the absence of the malar sulcus. It differs from Prokius Nieves-Aldrey, Medianero & Nicholls, 2021, Dryocosmus Giraud, 1859 and Coffeikokkos Pujade-Villar & Melika, 2012 by the toothed tarsal claws; moreover, in Dryocosmus, Coffeikokkos Nichollsiella Melika, Pujade-Villar & Stone, 2021 and Kinseyella Pujade-Villar & Melika, 2010 the malar space exhibits conspicuous radiating striae from clypeus covering all malar space’s area (absent or faint short striae only visible around the clypeus, never surpassing 1/3 of malar space’s longitude in Neuroandricus gen. nov.). Moreover, Nichollsiella and Kinseyella have the second metasomal tergum sculptured, alutaceous to reticulate, sometimes striate (without sculpture, smooth in Neuroandricus gen. nov.). The rest of the genera exhibit a tuft of setae on the ventral spine and the malar space without radiating striae. The new genus differs from Protobalandricus by having the radial cell open (closed in Protobalandricus); it differs from Burnettweldia by having the metasoma smooth and mostly glabrous except of few setae on anterolateral margin of second tergum (with all terga laterally with dense long white setae and micropunctures in Burnettweldia); it differs from Antron by the glabrous body (with a dense pilosity in the head and mesosoma and white dense setae anterolaterally of the metasoma in Antron); it differs from Atrusca by hyaline fore wings and a long radial cell (with spots and a short radial cell in Atrusca); it differs from Prokius by the sculptured mesosoma and the ventral spine with a dense tuft of apical setae (smooth mesosoma and the hypopygial spine bearing long and thick setae, arranged in pairs perpendicular to the spine margins and only slightly extending beyond the apex of the spine in Prokius); it differs from Disholandricus by a glabrous mesoscutum without piliferous points (with long pilosity and piliferous points in Disholandricus); it differs from Cynips ‘ sensu lato ’ by hyaline fore wings, the head posteriorly with sparse setae, the antenna without long pilosity and the circumscutellar carina absent (fore wing with numerous fuscate small spots in 3rd cubital cell and/or the head posteriorly densely pubescent and the antenna with long protruding dense setae and/or the circumscutellar carina present in Cynips ‘ sensu lato ’). It also closely resembles Barucynips by the lance shaped projection in the ventral spine of the hypopygium, but in Neuroandricus gen. nov. the clypeus is slightly projected, the gular sulcus is absent, the antenna with 11–12 flagellomeres, the propodeal carina complete, without median carina, while in Barucynips the clypeus is strongly projected over mandibles, the gular sulcus present, the antenna with 14 flagellomeres and the lateral propodeal carina fragmented, with a fragmented median longitudinal carina.
Description.
Head (Figs 2a–b) circular, coriaceous, with white setae on lower face. Gena coriaceous, slightly broadened behind eye, slightly shorter than transverse diameter of eye, sparsely pubescent; malar space with few, very inconspicuous, short striae radiating from clypeus. Lower face coriaceous, sparsely pubescent, without striae, elevated median area glabrous, coriaceous, without striae. Clypeus sub-rectangular, flat, broader than high, without or with very few, short and inconspicuous radiating striae, ventrally slightly curved, not emarginate and not incised medially; anterior tentorial pit, epistomal sulcus and clypeo-pleurostomal line distinct. Frons, interocellar area and vertex reticulate, glabrous; occiput, postgena, postocciput coriaceous, pubescent.
Antenna (Fig. 2c–d) shorter than body, with 12 flagellomeres (sometimes suture between F11 and F12 incomplete).
Mesosoma (Figs 2f, 3a–b). Pronotum laterally coriaceous with transverse parallel striae along posterior edge, extending to 1/3 of pronotum width, with sparse white setae (denser superiorly), emarginate along lateral and dorsal edges. Propleuron alutaceous with sparse setae and some weak carinae. Mesoscutum coriaceous, with few white setae along notaulus. Notaulus complete with smooth bottom; median mesoscutal line absent; anterior parallel line and parapsidal line inconspicuous; parascutal carina complete, smooth, glabrous, extends to notauli. Transscutal articulation deep, distinct. Mesoscutellum coriaceous-rugose with very weak rugae in central part of disc; scutellar foveae transverse, with alutaceous bottom, divided by a weak central carina. Mesopleuron coriaceous-reticulate with transverse interrupted striae, rugose, with sparse white setae; speculum coriaceousMetascutellum rectangular, coriaceous-rugose, glabrous; ventral impressed area short, present. Lateral propodeal carinae distinct, thin, subparallel, central propodeal area smooth, glabrous; lateral propodeal area weak coriaceous, with white setae.
Fore wing (Fig. 1b) 1.2× as long as body, hyaline, margin ciliate; radial cell open, 4.5× as long as broad, R1 reaching wing margin, Rs nearly reaching wing margin; areolet present, big; Rs+M visible to 2/3 of its length, its projection reaching basal vein below 1/2 of its height.
Legs. Tarsal claws toothed, with a basal lobe (Fig. 2e).
Metasoma (Fig. 3a) shorter than head+mesosoma, as long as high in lateral view, second metasomal tergum smooth, with few scattered white setae anterolaterally, without micropunctures; subsequent terga and hypopygium smooth without setae; prominent part of ventral spine of hypopygium with long white setae ventrally forming a tuft with a lance shaped projection (Figs 3 c-d) reaching almost 1/4 of the total length of the ventral spine.
Gall (Fig. 4). The asexual generation induces galls on the underside of leaves, attached to the secondary veins. Pustule-like, oval in outline, yellowish in color, leathery surface with bristly hairs. All internal space corresponds to the larval chamber.
Distribution. Mexico. A single species is known.
description: Published as part of Pujade-Villar, Juli, Savall-Roig, Gabriel, Equihua-Martínez, Armando, Estrada-Venegas, Edith G., Barrera-Ruiz, Uriel M., Cibrián-Tovar, David, Vera-Ortiz, Alexis, Silvia Romero-Rangel, Cuesta-Porta, Víctor, Cazorla-Vila, Júlia & Melika, George, 2024, Description of Neuroandricus a new genus of gall wasp (Hym.: Cynipidae) and a new species of associated Sycophila (Hym.: Eurytomidae), pp. 177-193 in Zootaxa 5538 (2) on pages 179-180, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5538.2.5, http://zenodo.org/record/14611649