New gall midges (Diptera, Cecidomyiidae) associated with two species of Eugenia (Myrtaceae)

Abstract

ABSTRACT. New gall midges (Diptera, Cecidomyiidae) associated with two species of Eugenia (Myrtaceae). Jorgenseniella eugeniae, gen. nov., sp. nov. and Dasineura marginalis, sp. nov. are described based on material obtained from leaf galls on Eugenia umbelliflora and E. rotundifolia (Myrtaceae) Insect galls are very frequent and abundant in Brazilian sand coastal plain (restinga), where the gall midges (Diptera, Cecidomyiidae) represent the most diverse galling family and Myrtaceae the most attacked host plant family (Monteiro et al. 1994(Monteiro et al. , 2004 Maia 2001a,b). Among the Myrtaceae, Eugenia Linnaeus (Myrtaceae) is one of the most rich plant genus in number of species as well as in individual abundance in this ecosystem (Araujo 2000). Furthermore, Eugenia comprises the high diversity of Cecidomyiidae galls (14 kinds of galls). Maia (1993Maia ( , 1994Maia ( , 2001a described six species of gall midges associated with this genus in restingas, two of them on Eugenia rotundifolia Casar and two on E. umbelliflora Berg (this last plant species referred as E. multiflora Camb. in Maia 2001a).In the present work, a new genus and two new species of gall midges are described-Jorgenseniella eugeniae, gen. nov., sp. nov. and Dasineura marginalis, sp. nov.. Biological aspects of gall, including distribution pattern in the leaf, site of pupation and period of occurrence are added.Dasineura Rondani, 1840 is a cosmopolitan and catchall genus with hundreds of species described. According to Gagné (1994), this genus is traditionally defined by the folllowing characters: palpus with 4 segments; tarsal claws toothed; R5 shorter than wing length; gonocoxites partially bare; female eighth tergite longitudinally divided; ovipositor elongateprotrusible; female cerci fused; spatula clove-shaped; larva with six lateral papillae on each side of the spatula and eight terminal papillae.There are 13 species of Dasineura described to Neotropical New gall midges (Diptera, Cecidomyiidae) associated with two species of Eugenia (Myrtaceae) 1994). Seven of them were described from Brazil. Jorgenseniella new genus, is described here for a single species, Jorgenseniella eugeniae. It appears to be most similar to Calmonia Tavares, 1917, a neotropical genus with only two known species, both of them associated with Ficus sp. (Moraceae). MATERIAL AND METHODSDuring 2002, once each season, twenty Eugenia umbelliflora and E. rotundifolia plants on each of the three different restinga's areas were inspected and all kinds of gall found on them were collected. In the Restinga de Barra de Maricá (Maricá, RJ) the galls were collected only on Eugenia rotundifolia, in Parque Nacional da Restinga de Jurubatiba (Macaé, RJ) they were collected only on Eugenia umbelliflora and in Restinga de Arraial do Cabo (Arraial do Cabo, RJ) the galls came from both plant species. In the laboratory, the sampled galls were placed in plastic bags in order to obtain the adult insects.The specimens were first preserved in 70% alcohol and then mounted on slides followi...

Two new Dasineura species (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) from coastal tea tree, Leptospermum laevigatum (Myrtaceae) in Australia

“…The shape and setation of the female's abdominal tergites 7 and 8 was not described for the South American species, and setation of the male gonostyli was shown for only two of them. In D. gigantea Angelo & Maia, the gonostylus is setose dorsally on its basal third (Angelo and Maia 1999), as in the two species from Leptospermum, whereas in D. marginalis Maia it is setose almost to its tip (Maia et al 2005). Differences are also found in the shape of the aedeagus, which is narrow and rounded apically in D. gigantea and D. marginalis Maia but truncated and notched in D. myrciariae Maia (Maia 1995).…”

“…Differences are also found in the shape of the aedeagus, which is narrow and rounded apically in D. gigantea and D. marginalis Maia but truncated and notched in D. myrciariae Maia (Maia 1995). Good differences are found in the shape of the pupal antennal bases, which are barely developed in D. strobila, bear tiny pointed projections in D. myrciariae, D. tavaresi Maia (Maia 1995) and D. tomentosa, developed into small tapered horns in D. globosa Maia and D. marginalis (Maia 1995;Maia et al 2005), or form flat, slightly bi-lobed ridges in D. gigantea (Angelo and Maia 1999). The number of terminal papillae in the larvae also vary among species, being eight in D. myricariae and D. tavaresi, but six in D. gigantea, D. strobila and D. tomentosa.…”

A Single Swede Midge (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) Larva Can Render Cauliflower Unmarketable

“…Cecidomyiids are challenging insect pests because of their ability to manipulate plant growth, resulting in galls and tumorous formations ( Maia et al 2005 ; Vitou et al 2008 ; Vijaykumar et al 2009 ; Hall et al 2012 ; Stuart et al 2012 ; Uechi et al 2017 ). Specifically, swede midge is difficult to control due to: 1) the short adult life span and concealed feeding of larvae ( Readshaw 1966 ; Hallett et al 2009a , Chen et al 2011 ); 2) multiple overlapping generations with irregular emergence phenotypes that are difficult to predict ( Hallett et al 2009b ); and 3) all developmental stages of susceptible Brassica hosts seem impacted by herbivory ( Hallett 2007 ).…”