Dyscritulus europaeus sp. nov. (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Aphidiinae): description of a new aphid parasitoid species with an identification key for species of the genus

By

Kocić, Korana
Petrović, Andjeljko
Čkrkić, Jelisaveta
Achterberg, C. van
Tomanović, Željko

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2023

Original Publication

ZooKeys

Volume

1175

Pages

285--297

Subjects

Aphid parasitoids , Europe , Museum Collections , new species , taxonomy

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1175.106416

 

Abstract

The braconid genus Dyscritulus Hincks is a small member of the subfamily Aphidiinae, distributed in Europe and Central Asia. All its species are highly specialized parasitoids of aphids of the genera Drepanosiphum Koch and, probably, Periphyllus van der Hoeven which are mostly associated with maple and sycamore trees (genus Acer). Upon examination of specimens from the Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, we unexpectedly noted unusual variability in morphological characters compared to other known Dyscritulus species. Further inspection of other material previously identified as Dyscritulus planiceps Marshall, 1896 revealed additional specimens with the same morphological variability. Here we describe a new species of the genus, Dyscritulus europaeussp. nov., associated with Drepanosiphum aphids on Acer.