Oak Petiole Gall Wasp
Andricus quercuspetiolicola Bassett, 1863
Oak Petiole Gall Wasp: https://marylandbiodiversity.com/species/20418
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Source: Wikipedia

Andricus quercuspetiolicola
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Cynipidae
Genus: Andricus
Species:
A. quercuspetiolicola
Binomial name
Andricus quercuspetiolicola
(Bassett, 1863)
Synonyms

Andricus quercuspetiolicola, also called the oak petiole gall wasp, is a species of oak gall wasp in the family Cynipidae.[1] Galls in which the larvae live and feed are formed along the midrib or petiole of white oak leaves.[1]

Range

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This species occurs throughout the eastern half of North America where its host plants grow.[1][2][3][4]

Galls

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Galls on bur oak

The oak petiole gall wasp forms galls on white oaks, including Quercus alba, Q. bicolor, Q. montana, Q. macrocarpa, Q. michauxii, Q. prinoides, and Q. stellata.[1][2]

The galls of the sexual generation are round or club-shaped and formed on the petiole or midrib of the leaves in spring, with adults of both sexes emerging from galls in late June and early July.[1][2] The gall is a firm swelling with a scar at the apex and contains several cells, each with a larva.[1][2] It is initially green but becomes brown and woody as it ages.[1][2][5]

The galls and timing of the agamic generation are unknown.[3]

Parasitoids of the oak petiole gall wasp include the crypt-keeper wasp (Euderus set).[6]

Taxonomy

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The adults were first described by Homer Franklin Bassett in 1863 with the name Cynips quercuspetiolicola, though the galls had been previously described by Carl Robert Osten-Sacken.[5] This species is now considered to be in the genus Andricus, and several other names are considered synonyms.[7]


References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Weld, L. Hart. (1959). Cynipid galls of the Eastern United States. Ann Arbor, Mich.
  2. ^ a b c d e Beutenmuller, William (1892). "Catalogue of gall-producing insects found within fifty miles of New York City, with descriptions of their galls, and of some new species" (PDF). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 4: 245–278.
  3. ^ a b Digweed, Scott (2006). "Diversity of gall wasps (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) on bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa Michx.) in Riding Mountain National Park, MB". Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Alberta. 53.
  4. ^ "Oak Petiole Gall Wasp (Andricus quercuspetiolicola)". iNaturalist. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  5. ^ a b Bassett, H.F. (1863). "Descriptions of several supposed new species of Cynips, with remarks on the formation of certain galls". Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Philadelphia. 2: 323–333.
  6. ^ Ward, Anna K. G.; Khodor, Omar S.; Egan, Scott P.; Weinersmith, Kelly L.; Forbes, Andrew A. (2019-09-27). "A keeper of many crypts: a behaviour-manipulating parasite attacks a taxonomically diverse array of oak gall wasp species". Biology Letters. 15 (9): 20190428. doi:10.1098/rsbl.2019.0428. ISSN 1744-9561. PMC 6769138. PMID 31551066.
  7. ^ Poole, Robert W.; Gentili, P. (1996). Hymenoptera, Mecoptera, Megaloptera, Neuroptera, Raphidioptera, Trichoptera. Nomina Insecta Nearctica: A Check List of the Insects of North America. Vol 2 (PDF). Entomological Information Services. ISBN 1-889002-02-X. OCLC 35184098.