Corresponding author: Jiri Skuhrovec (
Academic editor: M. Alonso-Zarazaga
The immature stages of the following five Palaearctic
Skuhrovec J, Gosik R, Caldara R, Toševski I, Batyra A (2022) Description of immature stages of
The genus
The Palaearctic
To date, larvae and pupae of only three species of
Therefore, the aims of the present study are to describe larvae and pupae of five
The material for this study, i.e., L3 larvae and pupae from each of the species studied was collected from their host plants together with the adult, and subsequently preserved in 2 ml screw-cap micro tubes (Sarstedt, Germany) filled with 96% ethanol at 4–6 °C. The insect taxa were identified by Roberto Caldara, those of the plants by Ivo Toševski.
Part of the larval and pupal material was preserved in glycol or Pampel fixation liquid (see
All the specimens described were fixed in 95% ethanol and examined under an optical stereomicroscope (Olympus SZ 60 and Nikon Eclipse 80i) with calibrated oculars. The following measurements of larval instars were made: body length (
Measurements (in mm) of body parts (mature larva) in the
Species | Body length | Body width | Head width |
---|---|---|---|
|
2.332, 3.001, 2.661 | 0.761, 1.003 | 0.502, 0.532 |
|
2.2013, 2.2512, 2.335, 2.267 | 0.7528, 0.869 | 0.4014, 0.4713, 0.5014 |
|
2.251, 2.374, 2.504 | 0.876, 0.953 | 0.427, 0.452 |
|
2.161, 2.561, 2.831, 3.001 | 0.761, 1.003 | 0.502, 0.532 |
|
2.251, 2.332, 2.461 | 0.832, 1.102 | 0.401, 0.513 |
The drawings and outlines were made using a drawing tube (MNR–1) installed on a stereomicroscope (Amplival) and processed by computer software (Corel Photo-Paint X7, Corel Draw X7). The thoracic spiracle was located on the prothorax near the boundary of the prothorax and mesothorax, as shown in the drawing, but this spiracle is of mesothoracic origin (
Measurements (in mm) of body parts (pupa) in the
Species | Female | Male | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
THW |
|
|
THW | |
|
2.122, 2.321 | 1.253 | 0.753 | 2.251 | 1.321 | 0.821 |
|
2.371, 2.623 | 1.323, 1.421 | 0.753, 0.851 | 2.202, 2.221 | 1.122, 1.321 | 0.703 |
|
1.871, 2.251, 2.501 | 0.623, 0.751 | 0.751, 1.123 | 1.921, 2.073 | 0.921, 1.12, 1.251 | 0.671, 1.003 |
|
2.122, 2.321 | 1.253 | 0.701, 0.752 | 2.251 | 1.321 | 0.801 |
|
2.243, 2.505, 2.733 | 1.302, 1.354, 1.503, 1.552 | 0.824, 0.874, 0.883 | 2.241, 2.403, 2.602 | 1.322, 1.354 | 0.823, 0.873 |
The terms and abbreviations for the setae of the mature larvae and pupae are as in
The sequence of the species follows that proposed by
The botanical taxonomy follows APG IV (
Serbia, Bela Palanka,
(Figs
(Figs
The immature stages of
Serbia, Gornji Milanovac, Donja Vrbava, GPS
(Figs
(Figs
The larva was already known to feed on the ovary of
The adult of this species, widely distributed throughout Europe (
Serbia, Kalna, GPS
(Figs
(Figs
The adults of
The first findings of this originally central Asian species in many countries of central and southern Europe (Italy, Switzerland, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland) have been reported in many faunistic papers during the last 15 years (
Serbia, Pirot, Ponor, GPS
(Figs
(Figs
Previously the larva of this species was observed on
This species belongs to a group of very similar species characterized by slender subrectangular elytra, rostrum in lateral view tapered from the antennal insertion to the apex, and short protibiae in the female. There are no particular phylogenetic affinities with the adult (see
Serbia, Boljetin, GPS
(Figs
(Figs
The host plants of this species are several
This species is common in the whole of Europe and Anatolia. The adult is closely related to
The following key is based on the larvae of the five
1 | Postdorsal segment on abdominal segments with one |
|
– | Postdorsal segment on abdominal segments with two |
|
2 | Pronotum with six |
|
– | Pronotum with ten |
|
3 | Praedorsal segment on abdominal segments with two |
|
– | Praedorsal segment on abdominal segments with one |
|
4 | Body cuticle covered with numerous reddish or brown asperities, black spots at base of setae. Head dark brown. Epipharynx with two |
|
– | Body cuticle smooth, setae without black spots at base. Head pale yellow. Epiharynx with three |
|
5 | Pronotum with seven setae. Meso- and metathorax with two |
|
– | Pronotum with ten setae. Meso- and metathorax with one |
|
The following key is based on the pupae of the five
1 | Abdominal protuberance prominent, disc-shaped. Head with one |
|
– | Abdominal protuberance short, conical. Head with two |
|
2 | Pronotal protuberances with serrated margin. Rostrum without setae. Pronotum with one |
|
– | Pronotal protuberances with smooth margin. Rostrum with one |
|
3 | Pronotum with three |
|
– | Pronotum with two |
|
4 | Pronotum with one |
|
– | Pronotum with two |
|
It has been suggested that the number of palpomeres of the labial palpi is one of the most important morphological characters of larvae in the
Another crucial generic-specific character in
Another debatable state in the larvae is the number of epipharyngeal setae (especially
The last important characteristic observed within the
With regard to the pupae, an uncommon character is the presence of two more or less sclerotized pronotal prominences, which can be smooth or serrated. Moreover, these pronotal protuberances (p-pr) are divisible into two parts with or without a stem from the pronotum and may have conical asperities or serrated margins. These prominences are present in all the
All the larvae and pupae of every species studied here, and also the three described by
This study confirms that all the Palaearctic species of the genus
The study was supported by a grant from the Czech Ministry of Agriculture (Mze ČR) RO0418 to J. Skuhrovec, and partly funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia, grant No. 451–03–9/2021–14/200010 to I. Toševski. We thank Peter Senn for the linguistic proofreading.