Neuroterus anthracinus

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Neuroterus anthracinus
Oyster Gall on Oak leaf.JPG
Oyster gall on pedunculate oak
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Cynipidae
Genus: Neuroterus
Species:
N. anthracinus
Binomial name
Neuroterus anthracinus

Neuroterus anthracinus is a widely distributed gall wasp that forms chemically induced leaf galls on oak trees. N. anthracinus has both sexual and agamic generations and in consequence forms two distinct galls, the oyster gall and April-bud gall. [1]

Contents

Synonyms

Ameristus Förster 1869, Diplobius Kinsey 1923, Dolichostrophus Ashmead 1887, Neospathogaster Kinsey 1923, Spathegaster Hartig 1840, furunculus Beyerinck 1882, ostreus Giraud 1859, ostria Hartig 1840, Andricus ostreus, Neuroterus schlechtendali and Andricus furunculus are all previous nomenclatures found in the literature. [2]

Galls

A red spotted example of the gall Red spotted Oyster Gall.JPG
A red spotted example of the gall
Oyster gall on a Quercus robur leaf Oyster Gall.JPG
Oyster gall on a Quercus robur leaf

The oyster gall is found on the leaf underside, rarely above, and is around 0.3 cm across, located between the midrib and the lateral veins. [1] It develops under the lower epidermis and when it emerges it has two flaps of valve-like tissue which remain, even after the gall has fallen. The gall has also been recorded as green, brown, pink and even with red spots. [1]

The April-bud gall is of brief duration, the bud swelling and the insect emerging within a week from the smooth and oval 0.8 cm gall, tucked up within the bud scales. The old galls show the escape aperture clearly. [1]

Life cycle

The gall wasp N. anthracinus Neuroterus anthracinus 17782.jpg
The gall wasp N. anthracinus

Agamic generation

Emerging in autumn the parthenogenetic female of the agamic generation developed in the unilocular and unilarval bean-shaped structure, which is about 0.8 cm across, known as the 'oyster gall'; they lay eggs within the buds which result in the bisexual generation. [1] [3]

Sexual generation

The males and females emerge from the unilocular and unilarval April-bud galls in the terminal or axillary buds around May; their fertilised eggs placed in the leaf lamina result in the Oyster gall. [1]

Parasites and inquilines

Several parasites and inquilines are found in both the sexual and agamic phases. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gall wasp</span> Family of wasps

Gall wasps, also traditionally calledgallflies, are hymenopterans of the family Cynipidae in the wasp superfamily Cynipoidea. Their common name comes from the galls they induce on plants for larval development. About 1,300 species of this generally very small creature are known worldwide, with about 360 species of 36 different genera in Europe and some 800 species in North America.

<i>Andricus quercuscalicis</i> Species of wasp

Andricus quercuscalicis is a gall wasp species inducing knopper galls.

<i>Andricus kollari</i> Species of insect

Andricus kollari, also known as the marble gall wasp, is a parthenogenetic species of wasp which causes the formation of marble galls on oak trees. Synonyms for the species include Cynips kollari, Andricus quercusgemmae, A. minor, A. indigenus and A. circulans.

<i>Andricus foecundatrix</i> Species of wasp

Andricus foecundatrix is a parthenogenetic gall wasp which lays a single egg within a leaf bud, using its ovipositor, to produce a gall known as an oak artichoke gall, oak hop gall, larch-cone gall or hop strobile The gall develops as a chemically induced distortion of leaf axillary or terminal buds on pedunculate oak or sessile oak trees. The larva lives inside a smaller hard casing inside the artichoke and this is released in autumn. The asexual wasp emerges in spring and lays her eggs in the oak catkins. These develop into small oval galls which produce the sexual generation of wasps. A yew artichoke gall caused by the fly Taxomyia taxi also exists, but is unrelated to the oak-borne species. Previous names or synonyms for the species A. fecundator are A. fecundatrix, A. pilosus, A. foecundatrix, A. gemmarum, A. gemmae, A. gemmaequercus, A. gemmaecinaraeformis and A. quercusgemmae.

<i>Neuroterus</i> Genus of wasps

Neuroterus is a genus of gall wasps that induce galls on oaks in which the wasp larvae live and feed. Some species produce galls that fall off the host plant and 'jump' along the ground due to the movement of the larvae within.

<i>Andricus lignicola</i> Species of wasp

Cola-nut galls develop as a chemically induced distortion of leaf axillary or terminal buds on pedunculate oak or sessile oak trees, caused by the agamic gall wasp Andricus lignicola which lays single eggs within leaf buds using their ovipositor. A previous name or synonym for the species A. lignicola is A. lignicolus and A. venheurni.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-pea gall</span> Species of wasp

The red-pea gall or red currant gall develops as a chemically induced distortion arising from the underside of the mid-rib of a vein on Quercus species and it is attached by a short stalk or peduncle. The red-wart gall is the sexual phase of the same species.

<i>Neuroterus quercusbaccarum</i> Species of wasp

The common spangle gall on the underside of leaves and the currant gall on the male catkins or occasionally the leaves, develop as chemically induced distortions on pedunculate oak, or sessile oak trees, caused by the cynipid wasp Neuroterus quercusbaccarum which has both agamic and bisexual generations.

<i>Neuroterus albipes</i> Species of wasp

Neuroterus albipes is a gall wasp that forms chemically induced leaf galls on oak trees which has both bisexual and agamic generations and therefore forms two distinct galls, the smooth spangle gall and Schenck's gall. Neuroterus laeviusculus and Spathegaster albipes are previous binomials found in the literature.

<i>Neuroterus numismalis</i> Species of wasp

Neuroterus numismalis is a gall wasp that forms chemically induced leaf galls on oak trees. It has both bisexual and agamic (parthenogenetic) generations and forms two distinct galls on oak leaves, the silk button gall and blister gall. The galls can be very numerous with more than a thousand per leaf.

<i>Andricus</i> Genus of wasps

Andricus is a genus of oak gall wasps in the family Cynipidae.

<i>Andricus grossulariae</i> Species of wasp

Andricus grossulariae is a gall wasp species inducing agamic acorn cup galls on oak tree acorn cups and sexual phase galls on catkins. Synonyms include Andricus fructuum, Andricus gemellus, Andricus intermedius, Andricus mayri and Cynips panteli.

<i>Biorhiza pallida</i> Species of wasp

Biorhiza pallida, also known as the oak apple gall wasp, is a gall wasp species in the family Cynipidae. This species is a member of the tribe Cynipini: the oak gall wasp tribe. Cynipini is the tribe partially responsible for the formation of galls known as oak apples on oak trees. These are formed after the wasp lays eggs inside the leaf buds and the plant tissues swell as the larvae of the gall wasp develop inside. This wasp has a widespread distribution within Europe.

<i>Andricus curvator</i> Species of wasp

Andricus curvator is a gall wasp which forms chemically induced leaf galls on oak trees and has both agamic and sexual generations. Agamic and sexual generations usually form two distinct galls on oak trees, but in the case of A. curvator there are six galls; the sexual generation usually on the leaf, occasionally in a twig or catkin, and the agamic generation in a bud. The wasp was first described by Theodor Hartig, a German biologist, in 1840 and is found in most of Europe.

<i>Andricus inflator</i> Species of wasp

Andricus inflator is a species of gall-forming wasps, in the genus Andricus, which has a sexual and an asexual generation, producing two different galls. The wasp was named by the German biologist Theodor Hartig, in 1840 and is found in Europe.

<i>Disholcaspis quercusmamma</i> Species of wasp

Disholcaspis quercusmamma, the oak rough bulletgall wasp, is a species of gall wasp in the family Cynipidae. The quercus in its name is the genus name for oak, while "mamma" is Latin for "breast", presumably a reference to the "nipple" on the gall.

<i>Druon quercuslanigerum</i> Species of gall wasp

Druon quercuslanigerum is a species of gall wasp that forms galls on Quercus virginiana, Quercus geminata, Quercus fusiformis, and Quercus oleoides. There are both asexual and sexual generations. The asexual generation forms galls on the leaves whereas the sexual generation forms galls on the catkins. It can be found in the southern United States and Mexico. Predators of this species include the green parakeet.

Andricus hispanicus is a parthenogenetic species of wasp which causes the formation of marble galls on oak trees. The galls caused by the agamous generation are similar to the closely related Andricus kollari.

References

Notes
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Darlington, Page 160
  2. "Wild about Denmark" . Retrieved September 19, 2009.
  3. Stubbs, Page 48
Sources