Euura testaceipes

Euura testaceipes (Brischke, 1883)

Cryptocampus testaceipes Brischke, 1883b: 209. Described: ♀, ♂, larva, gall, recorded host: Salix fragilis. Type material thought to have been destroyed, with most of the rest of Brischke's collection (Blank & Taeger 1998). Type locality: not explicitly stated, but according to a comment in the introduction probably Prussia, near Danzig (now Poland, Gdansk). Authorship of the species name often wrongly attributed to Zaddach, or Zaddach & Brischke.

Euura testaceipes: Benson (1958).

Euura (Euura) testaceipes: Viitasaari & Vikberg (1985).

Nematus (Euura) testaceipes: Zhelochovtsev (1988).

Euura cynips Newman, 1837: 260. Described: ♀, ♂, recorded host: Salix sp. Types probably lost or destroyed (Liston & Prous 2014). Type locality: London area. With respect to C. testaceipes, E. cynips is a nomen oblitum (Liston et al. 2006).

Variability. Female: Body length: 3.8–4.7mm. Pronotum mainly yellow to pale only on dorsal margin. Male: 3.2mm [only one specimen examined]. Total number of specimens examined: 10.

Genetic data. Nearest neighbours in COI barcoding are E. amerinae (minimum divergence about 1.1%), and E. venusta (minimum divergence about 3.2%).

Similar species. Female; morphologically very similar to venusta. See key for details. Male; only distinguished from venusta by the colour of the metafemur. However, we have examined very few males of either species, and it is not clear whether this character is reliable.

Comments. The male of this species was unknown to Benson (1958). Perhaps it only occurs rarely. We examined a single male: Zucht [reared], Litauen, nr. Rociskiai, Kopelke 9.8.2006, S. fragilis Mittelrippe (SMF).

Bionomics. Host plants: Salix alba, S. × fragilis (Kopelke 2003a), S. triandra (Benson 1958), S. babylonica (Malaise 1921a; possibly relates to hybrids of alba or × fragilis with babylonica), S. × blanda (Wahlgren 1959; as S. elegantissima). Kopelke (1999) mentions several other host records published by previous authors under the name testaceipes. These may have originated through misidentification (partly with venusta ?). Unclarified is Kopelke's own record of galls on Salix lapponum, tentatively attributed to E. testaceipes, from Norway, Oppland. These were not reared. In view of the primarily lowland and southern distribution of E. testaceipes compared to the relatively upland and northern range of venusta, the galls on S. lapponum seem more likely to belong to venusta (or a further, undescribed species). Biology: Kopelke (2003a).

Distribution. Central and North Europe, north to Finland, southern Norway and Sweden (Taeger et al. 2006, Haris 2009). Occurrence in Sweden: published records; Skåne (Wahlgren 1944), Västergötland (Lundberg 1966), Bohuslän, Uppland (Wahlgren 1944), Lycksele Lappmark (Haris 2009). Material examined: Skåne.

Euura venusta (Brischke, 1883)

Cryptocampus venustus Brischke, 1883b: 206 –207. Described: ♀, ♂, larva, gall, recorded hosts: Salix aurita and capraea [sic]. Type material thought to have been destroyed, with most of the rest of Brischke's collection (Blank & Taeger 1998). Type locality: Prussia; Weichselmünde, Brösen und Jäschkenthale (now in Poland, near Gdansk). Authorship of the species name often wrongly attributed to Zaddach or Zaddach & Brischke.

Euura venusta: Enslin (1915).

Euura (Euura) venusta: Viitasaari & Vikberg (1985).

Nematus (Euura) venustus: Zhelochovtsev (1988).

Cryptocampus pullulus Brischke, 1883b: 207. Unavailable name: mentioned by Brischke as a manuscript name given by Zaddach to specimens that Brischke considered conspecific with C. venustus Brischke.

Cryptocampus brevicornis Brischke, 1883b: 210 –211. Described: ♀, ♂, recorded hosts: Salix aurita and capraea [sic]. Type material thought to have been destroyed, with most of the rest of Brischke's collection (Blank & Taeger 1998). Type locality: same as for C. venustus, because Brischke wrote ".. ich erzog sie [C. brevicornis] mit venustus aus denselben Gallen". Junior secondary homonym in Euura of Nematus brevicornis Förster, 1854.

Comments. The male of this species was unknown to Benson (1958). We examined five males reared from galls collected by Kopelke from S. caprea in Norway, Nordland, Lofoten (SMF).

Variability. Female: Body length: 3.3–5.0mm. Malar space partly pale to completely black. Lateral vertex brown marked to completely black. Male: 3.4–4.0mm. Malar space partly pale to completely black. Lower inner orbits pale to completely black. Total number of specimens examined: 16.

Genetic data. Nearest neighbour COI barcodes to E. venusta (2 specimens from France, one from Finland) are of E. testaceipes and E. amerinae with divergences of respectively about 3.2% and 2.8%.

Similar species. Female; morphologically most similar to testaceipes. Male; only distinguished from testaceipes by the colour of the metafemur. However, we have examined very few males of either species, and it is not clear whether this character is reliable.

Bionomics. Host plants: Salix aurita, S. caprea (Kopelke 2003a), S. lapponum [in Giant Mountains, Czech Republic] (Beneš 1968b), S. silesiaca [in Carpathians] (Beneš 2013), rarely S. cinerea (Vikberg & Zinovjev 2006), S. atrocinerea (Scotland, Perths., Doll, Craig Rennet, 25.08.1994, 1 ♀, reared K. P. Bland). Perhaps, but rarely, on S. lapponum in Scandinavia: see under testaceipes. Biology: Kopelke (2003a).

Distribution. Central and North Europe (Taeger et al. 2006), Caucasus (Armenia), Russian Far East (Zhelochovtsev & Zinovjev 1995). Occurrence in Sweden: published records; Skåne (Wahlberg 1951), Halland (Andersson 1955), Västergötland (Lundberg 1966), Södermanland, Uppland, Hälsingland, Norrbotten (Wahlberg 1951), Lycksele Lappmark (Haris 2009), Torne Lappmark (Wahlberg 1951), north to Torne Träsk area (Malaise 1921a, 1931a). Material examined: Öland, Småland, Uppland, Västmanland, Torne Lappmark.