Microbiota associated with Mollitrichosiphum aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae: Greenideinae): diversity,host species specificity and phylosymbiosis

Symbiotic association is universal in nature, and an array of symbionts play a crucial part in host life history. Aphids and their diverse symbionts have become a good model system to study insect-symbiont interactions. Previous symbiotic diversity surveys have mainly focused on a few aphid clades, and the relative importance of different factors regulating microbial community structure is not well understood. In this study, we collected 65 colonies representing eight species of the aphid genus Mollitrichosiphum from different regions and plants in southern China and Nepal and characterized their microbial compositions using Illumina sequencing of the V3 − V4 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene. We evaluated how microbiota varied across aphid species, geography and host plants and the correlation between microbial community structure and host aphid phylogeny. Heritable symbionts dominated the microbiota associated with Mollitrichosiphum, and multiple infections of secondary symbionts were prevalent. Ordination analyses and statistical tests highlighted the contribution of aphid species in shaping the structures of bacterial, symbiont and secondary symbiont communities. Moreover, we observed a significant correlation between Mollitrichosiphum aphid phylogeny and microbial community composition, providing evidence for a pattern of phylosymbiosis between natural aphid populations and their microbial associates.     

Astegopteryx spinocephala (Hemiptera: Aphididae), a new aphid species producing sterile soldiers that guard eggs laid in their gall

Astegopteryx spinocephala sp. nov., a soldier‐producing aphid species forming banana‐bunch shaped galls on Styrax benzoides in northern Thailand, is described. We found that galls of the species are formed in approximately June and last for almost 1 year, and that the aphid completes its life cycle without migrating to secondary hosts. Many alate sexuparae appeared in March/April, when many sexuals (arostrate males and rostrate females) and eggs were found in live subgalls guarded by soldiers that plugged the ostiole with their sclerotized, spiny heads. Two healthy galls sampled in April contained 2799 and 2659 eggs, respectively. Many live galls were still found in May, and some at the beginning of June. These galls contained both active soldiers and eggs, some of which had already hatched. This indicates that soldiers of A. spinocephala guard eggs until they hatch in at least some galls.     

Presence of two host races of Aphis gossypii Glover (Hemiptera: Aphididae) collected in Turkey

The aphid, Aphis gossypii, is a primary pest of citrus, cotton, cucurbits and greenhouse‐grown vegetables in Turkey and throughout Europe. There is some previous empirical data suggesting that host‐adapted genotypes of this aphid exist which may in fact be host‐races. To determine if host races of A. gossypii are indeed present in the eastern Mediterranean region of Turkey, reciprocal host transfer experiments and life table analyses were performed with multiple asexual lineages (= clones) of the aphid collected from different hosts. The collection hosts included citrus, cucumber, eggplant, okra, sweet pepper and cotton. Aphid developmental times on the host from which the aphid was originally collected (= collection or natal host) were shorter (5.2–6.0 days) and had a higher intrinsic rate of population growth (r_m = 0.25–0.44) than the 6.6–7.3 days required when the aphid was reared on a non‐original collection host (= non‐collection host or non‐natal host) and had r_m = 0.03–0.30. Total immature mortality of the cotton clone, especially in the first nymphal stage, was high (51–100%) with low r_m (0–0.03) on cucumber, citrus and sweet pepper. Aphid populations transferred from citrus, eggplant and okra to cotton (r_m = 0.29–0.30) did not differ significantly in their performance from that of the cotton population on cotton (r_m = 0.34), whereas that from sweet pepper and cucumber populations (r_m = 0.22–0.24) were significantly lower. These data have allowed us to separate A. gossypii into two distinct biological groups: (a) a ‘generalist’ population obtained from cucumber, sweet pepper, citrus, eggplant and okra which exhibited statistically better development on cotton; versus (b) a population from cotton which, by comparison on reciprocal hosts, developed poorly on non‐natal hosts except on eggplant. Development of the cotton clone on cucumber and okra was not improved after four successive generations on the non‐natal host. The good development of A. gossypii from eggplant and cotton on these reciprocal hosts suggests that these particular clones were similar, if not identical, host races.     

The genus Uroleucon (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in the Korean Peninsula,with descriptions of two new species

The aphid genus Uroleucon Mordvilko (Hemiptera: Aphididae) is recognized from the Korean Peninsula. A total of twenty species of Korean Uroleucon are confirmed including two new species: U. (Uromelan) chrysanthemicola sp. nov., on Chrysanthemum sp. (Asteraceae) from Mt. Oseo, Korea and U. (Uroleucon) jejuni sp. nov., on Echinops setifer Iljin (Asteraceae) from Jeju Island, Korea. Two new species are described with biometric measurements, illustrations, and identification keys to species on host plants.LSID urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:ADBBDD99-6A12-4854-B559-64D5EF1B9CB0.     

Taxonomic review of the genus Macrosiphum (Sternorrhyncha: Aphididae) for the Korean Peninsula, with description of a new species

Eight species of the genus Macrosiphum Passerini 1860 (Sternorrhyncha: Aphididae) are recognized from the Korean Peninsula. A new species, Macrosiphum ( Macrosiphum ) paektusani n. sp., is described herein for apterous and alate viviparous females on Rosa marretii Lev. (Rosaceae). The taxonomic position of Macrosiphum ( Macrosiphum ) cornifoliae Shinji 1924, com. rev., is transferred from the genus Sitobion Mordvilko 1914 to its original position. Host plants of the Korean Macrosiphum are reviewed and the identification key to subgenera and species is also presented.     

A new species of Megoura (Hemiptera,Aphididae) from Japan

A new species of the genus Megoura, M. lathyricola sp. n., was collected from Lathyrus japonicus subsp. japonicus (Leguminosae) in seashore areas of northern and southern Japan. This species is described and illustrated, and a revised key to the identification of the world species of Megoura is presented.     

Macrosiphum on ferns: taxonomy,biology and evolution,including the description of three new species (Hemiptera: Aphididae)

The phytophagous insect fauna of ferns has often been described as depauperate, and some have pointed to the paucity of evidence for adaptive radiation of insect groups feeding specifically on ferns. This paper examines the world's species of fern‐specific Macrosiphum aphids and attempts to determine whether fern‐feeding is a monophyletically derived trait in Macrosiphum. All sixteen species reported to feed on ferns, including three new species, were included in a cladistic analysis, along with fifteen other Macrosiphum species selected to represent the diversity of the genus, Papulaphis sleesmani (Pepper), because of its similarity to fern‐feeding Macrosiphum, and Sitobion avenae (Fabricius), which was used as outgroup. The results gave good support for the monophyly of fifteen of the sixteen fern‐feeders, and also supported a clade consisting of these fifteen fern‐feeders plus Macrosiphum equiseti (Holman), an Equisetum‐specific aphid. One species, Macrosiphum lapponicum Shaposhnikov, from northern Russia, was concluded to be unrelated to other fern‐feeding Macrosiphum. Whether this species truly feeds on a fern requires confirmation. Taxonomic and biological notes are provided for all fern‐feeding Macrosiphum of the world. These include one new combination, Macrosiphum cyatheae (Holman) comb.n., and three new species: Macrosiphum longirostratum sp.n. on Woodsia mollis and Woodsia sp. from Mexico (Michoacán), Macrosiphum miho sp.n. on ‘Aspidium’ sp. from the U.S.A. (Illinois) and Macrosiphum rebecae sp.n. on Adiantum sp. from Mexico (Michoacán). Keys to apterous and alate viviparae of Macrosiphum living on ferns are given.     

Two more new species of Aphidura (Hemiptera,Aphididae), and a note on variation in Aphidura bozhkoae Narzikulov

Two new species of Aphidura Hille Ris Lambers, 1956 (Hemiptera, Aphididae, Macrosiphini) are described; Aphidura libanensissp. n. from Prunus prostrata in Lebanon, and Aphidura corsicensissp. n. from Cerastium soleirolii in Corsica (France). Studies of Aphidura bozhkoae specimens from different localities have revealed that this species varies in its pattern of dorsal sclerotisation and other morphological characters, within and between populations. An updated key for identifying the world’s species of Aphidura is presented.     

Description of a new species of Hyadaphis Kirkaldy (Hemiptera: Aphididae) from Turkey

Apterous and alate viviparous females of Hyadaphis bupleuriphila sp. n. living on Bupleurum sp. (Apiaceae) and further undetermined Apiaceae are described from the Ankara province in central Turkey. The new species is morphologically similar to Hyadaphis coerulescens (Narzikulov, 1965), H. ferganica Mukhamediev & Akhmedov, 1979 and H. foeniculi (Passerini, 1860). A key to the apterous viviparous females of Hyadaphis spp. in Turkey is given.

http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:2A0A29EA-5FE7-459D-A337-CFA47601874E     

The aphid Ceratovacuna nekoashi (Hemiptera: Aphididae: Hormaphidinae) and its allied species in Korea,Japan and Taiwan

The aphid Ceratovacuna nekoashi and its allied species have been a taxonomically difficult group. They form peculiar “cat's‐paw” galls (called “Nekoashi” in Japanese) on Styrax trees and also use Microstegium grasses as their secondary hosts. Through sampling aphids from both Styrax galls and Microstegium grasses in South Korea, Japan and Taiwan, and sequencing their DNA, we made it clear that four distinct species occur in these regions: C. nekoashi (Sasaki), C. oplismeni (Takahashi), C. orientalis (Takahashi) and C. subtropicana sp. nov. In Korea, C. nekoashi forms galls on both S. japonicus and S. obassia, whereas in Japan the species forms galls on the former but not on the latter; our molecular analyses unequivocally indicated the occurrence of a single species in South Korea and mainland Japan. Aphids of the four species on the secondary host were morphologically discriminated from one another. The identity of the primary‐ and secondary‐host generations was also clarified for each species. All four species were found to produce second‐instar sterile soldiers in their Styrax galls, and first‐instar soldiers were found in colonies of C. subtropicana on the secondary host.     

Revision of the Australian species of Hyalobathra Meyrick (Lepidoptera: Pyraloidea: Crambidae: Pyraustinae) based on adult morphology and with description of a new species

Abstract The genus Hyalobathra Meyrick is redefined based on five Australian species including the type  species. The four named Australian species, H. archeleuca Meyrick, H. unicolor (Warren) , H. miniosalis (Guenée) and H. minialis (Warren), are redescribed and a new species, H. crenulata sp. n., is described . Hyalobathra unicolor is removed from synonymy with H. illectalis (Walker), and lectotypes are designated for H. archeleuca , H. minialis and for H. rhodoplecta Turner, a synonym of H. miniosalis . The presence of H. paupellalis (Lederer) in Australia could not be confirmed, but its genitalia are figured. Two previously included species, ' Hyalobathra ' aequalis (Lederer) and ' H .'  brevialis (Walker), are excluded from Hyalobathra, as they lack its generic apomorphies, but cannot at present be assigned to any other genus.     

Comparative morphology of immature stages of four species of Chinavia (Hemiptera,Pentatomidae), with a key to the species of Rio Grande do Sul,Brazil

Chinavia Orian (1965) is one of the most diverse genera of Pentatomidae, distributed in the Afrotropical, Neotropical and Nearctic Regions. Thirty-two species are recorded for Brazil, some of them having potential economic impact because they are found on crops and referred to as pests. The morphology of the five nymphal instars of Chinavia armigera (Stål, 1859), Chinavia aseada (Rolston, 1983), Chinavia brasicola (Rolston, 1983) and Chinavia runaspis (Dallas, 1851) are described here. Through a comparative study, identification keys were developed to allow an early identification of the 12 Chinavia species of Rio Grande do Sul.     

Redescription of Neoamphorophora ledi (Wahlgren, 1938) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) from Japan

Apterous viviparous females of Neoamphorophora ledi (Wahlgren, 1938) living on Rhododendron degronianum Carr. (Ericaceae) on Honshu island, Japan, are redescribed and the hitherto unknown alate viviparous females are here described. Rhododendron degronianum is a new host plant species for this aphid. This species is recorded for aphid fauna of Eastern Palearctic for the first time. Keys to species of Neoamphorophora based on apterous and alate viviparous females are given. A key to aphid genera with swollen siphunculi living on species of Rhododendron worldwide based on apterous viviparous females is also provided.     

A new species of Atheroides Haliday (Hemiptera,Aphididae) native to North America

We report and describe the first species of Atheroides Haliday presumed to be native to North America, collected at the Valles Caldera National Preserve, New Mexico, USA. We hypothesize its placement among the Siphini based on morphological, phylogenetic analysis and extend the distribution of the genus to the Holoarctic. We expand the key of the known Atheroides to include the new species and discuss the current hypotheses of the geographic distribution of the type species, Atheroides serrulatus Haliday.     

A new species of Aphis Linnaeus from Guangxi,China (Hemiptera,Aphididae), based on morphological characters and DNA sequences

A new species of the genus Aphis with stridulatory apparatus, Aphis gnetuma Qiao sp. n., feeding on Gnetum parvifolium which is a new host plant record for aphids from Guangxi, China is described. The new species is distinguished by a well-developed median frontal tubercle and body bearing white wax powder in life. The taxonomic position of this new species is supported by analysis results of COI and gnd genes. A key to Aphis species with stridulatory spines on the hind tibiae of apterous viviparous females is provided. The type specimens studied are deposited in the National Zoological Museum of China, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:BBB024DA-8454-4E22-8736-66ED92A3091B.     

A new species of Mollitrichosiphum Suenaga from Taiwan Island (Hemiptera,Aphididae), based on morphological characteristics and DNA sequences

A new species of Mollitrichosiphum Suenaga, Mollitrichosiphum tumorisiphum Qiao & Jiang, sp. n., from Fagus longipetiolata in Taiwan island is described. Siphunculi of Mollitrichosiphum tumorisiphum in alatae are distinctly swollen on the distal part, unlike those of the other known species in the genus. Updated keys to apterous and alate viviparous females of all known Chinese species of Mollitrichosiphum are provided. The specimens studied are deposited in the National Zoological Museum of China, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China and the Natural History Museum, London, United Kingdom.     

Camillea (Xylariaceae, Ascomycota), including two new species, along a trans-Andean altitude gradient in Ecuador

Two new species of Camillea are described from localities on an east–west transect through Ecuador between the latitudes 1°00’N and 1°00’S. Camillea ovalispora was collected in San Vicente de Huaticocha, an area characterized as humid lowland rainforest and premontane cloud forest; C. unistoma was collected at Cuyabeno, a protected area with black water inundated forest and primary rainforest on terra firme. Further, C. heterostoma var. macrospora is elevated to full species status as C. macrospora. New country records of six Camillea species are annotated from the same east-west transect. These are C. flosculosa, C. fossulata, C. hainesii, C. macrospora, C. scriblita, and C. tinctor. Also, previously recorded species have been annotated with new specimens added. Additionally, six distinct taxa from the transect that appear to be undescribed were included in the analysis; one is partly described but not the others due to insufficient material. The data showed an obvious altitude influence on the distribution and frequency of Camillea species. The diversity of species is lower on the western part of the transect compared to the eastern side, probably due to multiple factors such as differences in search intensity between the two slopes, difference in annual rainfall, and possibly the availability of host plants. Camillea taxa were only found at altitudes below 2,000 m, with the highest diversity below 600 m. Palmae is reported as a new host for Camillea species.     

Review of the Chinese species of the genus Varma Distant (Hemiptera,Fulgoromorpha, Tropiduchidae), with description of two new species

Two new species of Varma Distant, 1906, V. falcata Chang & Chen, sp. n. (China: Guizhou) and V. lobata Chang & Chen, sp. n. (China: Guizhou) are described and illustrated. The female genitalia of four speices including two known species are described and illustrated for the first time. The diagnostic characters of this genus are redefined. A checklist to the species of Varma in China is given. The Keys on male and female genitalia to the Chinese species of Varma are provided.