Corroborating molecular species discovery: Four new pine-feeding species of Chionaspis (Hemiptera, Diaspididae)

Abstract

The genus Chionaspis (Hemiptera, Diaspididae) includes two North American species of armored scale insects feeding on Pinaceae: Chionaspis heterophyllae Cooley, and Chionaspis pinifoliae (Fitch). Despite the economic impact of conifer-feeding Chionaspis on horticulture, the species diversity in this group has only recently been systematically investigated using samples from across the group’s geographic and host range. This paper provides morphological recognition characters for four new species that were recently hypothesized to exist on the basis of molecular evidence. The new species, here described, are Chionaspis brachycephalon Vea sp. n., Chionaspis caudata Vea sp. n., Chionaspis sonorae Vea sp. n. and Chionaspis torreyanae Vea sp. n. One of the new species, Chionaspis caudata Vea, has a gland spine at the apex of the pygidium, between the median lobes, unlike any other species of Chionaspis. An identification key to the species of Chionaspis feeding on pine in North America is provided.

Phylogeny and classification of armored scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha: Diaspididae)

“…With a few exceptions, all slides and DNA samples are retained by the University of Massachusetts Insect Collection. The exceptions are several type specimens of recently described species, which are distributed to other museums (Normark et al 2014;Vea et al 2013), and a synoptic collection of Panamanian material deposited in the Museo de Invertebrados G. B. Fairchild (MIUP), Panama City, Panama.…”

“…To save space, a triangular placeholder labelled "North American pine-feeding Chionaspis" represents 70 individuals of North American pine-feeding species, including C. pinifoliae (Fitch), C. heterophyllae (Cooley), C. brachycephalon Vea, C. sonorae Vea, and C. torreyanae Vea. A more complete analysis and discussion of this clade can be found in Gwiazdowski et al (2011) and Vea et al (2013). For further explanation of the analysis and notation used here, see the caption to Fig.…”

Host specificity of parasitoids (Encyrtidae) toward armored scale insects (Diaspididae): Untangling the effect of cryptic species on quantitative food webs

“…The females are always legless and wingless and exhibit complete fusion of the head, thorax, and abdomen into a flattened saclike body, limiting their external morphological features. Not surprisingly, some species of Diaspididae were found to be complexes of cryptic species (Campbell, Lawrence, Hudspath, & Gruwell, 2014;Gwiazdowski & Normark, 2014;Gwiazdowski, Vea, Andersen, & Normark, 2011;Vea, Gwiazdowski, & Normark, 2013).…”

Hypogeal scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of the coffee agro-system in Chiapas state, Mexico, with description of a new species of Williamsrhizoecus Kozár and Konczné Benedicty (Rhizoecidae)

“…Mexico has 594 Coccomorpha species recorded from various host plants, both on aerial and subterraneous parts (García Morales et al, 2016). The state of Chiapas has 19 species recorded belonging to 6 families, namely Asterolecanium epidendri (Bouché) and Palmaspis truncata (Russell) (Green), Milviscutulus mangiferae (Green), and Protopulvinaria pyriformis (Cockerell) (Coccidae); Dactylopius opuntiae (Cockerell) (Dactylopiidae); Crypticerya rosae (Riley and Howard), Echinicerya anomala Morrison, Icerya purchasi Maskell, Laurencella marikana Foldi, and Llaveia axin axin (Llave) (Monophlebidae); and Newsteadia tristani (Silvestri) (Ortheziidae) (Deitz & Davidson, 1986;Foldi, 1995;Hodgson & Foldi, 2006;Kozár, 2004;Kozár & Konczné Benedicty, 2007;D R Miller, 1996;D R Miller & Davidson, 1981, 2005Morrison, 1952;Unruh & Gullan, 2008;Vea, Gwiazdowski, & Normark, 2012;Williams & Granara de Willink, 1992). Among these species, only Coccus viridis has been recorded on Coffeae spp.…”