Research Article |
Corresponding author: Henrik Wallin ( henrik.wallin@saiglobal.com ) Academic editor: Francesco Vitali
© 2017 Henrik Wallin, Torstein Kvamme, Johannes Bergsten.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Wallin H, Kvamme T, Bergsten J (2017) To be or not to be a subspecies: description of Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n. (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae) developing in downy willow (Salix lapponum L.). ZooKeys 691: 103-148. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.691.12880
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A new subspecies of the European cerambycid Saperda populnea (Linnaeus, 1758) is described: Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n. based on specimens from Scandinavia. The male genitalia characters were examined and found to provide support for this separation, as well as differences in morphology, geographical distribution and bionomy. The preferred host tree for the nominate subspecies S. populnea populnea is Populus tremula L., whereas S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. is considered to be monophagous on Salix lapponum L. DNA sequence data of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) was generated from Scandinavian specimens of S. populnea populnea and specimens representing S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. The two subspecies were not reciprocally monophyletic and genetic distances in COI were small. All synonyms of S. populnea populnea have been considered, and species similar to S. populnea populnea have been examined, and not found to be related to S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. A male lectotype has been designated for each of the two following synonyms: Cerambyx decempunctatus De Geer, 1775, and Saperda salicis Zetterstedt, 1818. The synonymised species from Asia, S. balsamifera (Motshulsky, 1860), is elevated to subspecies: S. populnea balsamifera stat. n. We end with a discussion on the definition of subspecies under the unified species concept.
Palaearctic region, Nearctic region, taxonomy, Cerambycidae , Lamiinae , Saperda , new subspecies, new synonyms, genitalia characters, Salix lapponum , subspecies definition, unified species concept
The tribe Saperdini Mulsant, 1839 is extremely rich in species and consists of about 1000 species, mainly in the Oriental region (Bilý and Mehl 1989). The genus Saperda Fabricius, 1775, on the other hand, consists only of 42 species in the Holarctic region. In the Palaearctic region, 26 species and two subspecies are known (
Recently, there have been some taxonomic changes within the genus Saperda. Saperda balsamifera (Motschulsky, 1860) from east Palaearctic was listed as a separate species by
Our study focus mainly on the northern populations of S. populnea, which have less dense and more greyish pubescence and found to be monophagous on downy willow, Salix lapponum L. Reared specimens were compared with the preserved type specimens of the southern populations which are larger and have denser and more orange-brown pubescence. The southern form was described by Linnaeus already in 1758. A large number of similar specimens from Scandinavia and other parts of Europe, often confirmed to have been collected on, or reared from, Populus tremula L. are included. Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n., which we describe in this study from populations in the Fennoscandian mountains, has exclusively been reared from Salix lapponum (Fig.
Salix lapponum is abundant at higher altitudes in the Scandinavian mountains, where the shrubs may reach a height of 1–2 m on moist areas such as bogs and swamps, but scarce or absent in the southern coastal areas (
We have not been able to find any attacks on, or specimens reared from, any other Salix species in areas where Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n. is common. All the specimens from Scandinavia have been recorded at localities where Salix lapponum is abundant (Fig.
We have also made a comparison with other Saperda species from Europe, Asia (Siberia) and North America, with special emphasis on related species in the subgenus Compsidia Mulsant, 1839. The presented taxonomic study is based on examination of morphological characters as well as studies of the genitalia. We also use two different fragments of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) to test for reciprocal monophyly and calculate genetic distances. We adhere to the unified species concept (
All 17 available sequences for Saperda populnea in Bold and Genbank were downloaded. Apart from one sequence of mitochondrial ribosomal 16s, the remaining 16 were of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI). Of these one turned out to be misidentified (KF247304), one was of the 3-prime (“pat-jerry”) fragment of COI and 14 were of the 5-prime (LCO-HCO) barcode fragment of COI. Thirteen of these were from Finland and the FINBOL Barcoding project and had been released by
New material of both S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. and S. populnea populnea was collected as larva from the host plants Populus tremula and Salix lapponum in Sweden and Norway 2009-2013 (Tab.
DNA from imagines was extracted from adults using 1 leg, 2 legs, thoracic muscle tissue, or head and prothorax. When DNA from larvae was extracted, tissue from tergites or sternites was used. Extraction of DNA was done by using either the Quiagen tissue kit, or a GeneMole robot (Tab.
Ready-ToGo™ PCR beads (Amersham Biosciences) were used in all PCR recations and 2-4ul of DNA. The longer fragments were amplified under the following conditions: 95C for 5min followed by 40 cycles of 95C for 30s, 50C for 30s and 72C for 60s and a final extension period of 72C for 8min. The shorter fragments were amplified under the same conditions or with a shorter extension time (72C 50s). In second trials with samples that failed the first time, the annealing temperature was lowered to 47C. PCR reactions were purified with Exonuclease I and FastAP (Fermentas) and sequenced with a BigDye™ Terminator ver. 1.1 Cycle Sequencing Kit (Applied Biosystems), cleaned with a DyeEx 96 kit (QIAGEN) and ran on an ABI Prism 3100 Genetic Analyzer (Applied Biosystems).
Sequence chromatograms were edited in SEQUENCHER (Gene Codes Corporation). Contigs were created of the forward and reverse reads and of the two or three overlapping fragments for the older material. Sequences were exported in fasta format after primers had been removed and aligned using CLUSTALX 2.0 (
We calculated genetic distances under the Kimura 2-parameter model using MESQUITE (
Our study includes descriptions of the sclerotised parts of the male terminalia: the aedeagus, endophallus with the sclerites inside the median phallomere and the internal sac, tegmen with parameres and median lobe, and tergite VIII. The internal sac of the males was embedded in glycerol and photographed using a regular light microscope. This method is described in detail by
We maintain the use of the internal sac (part of the median phallomere), since it has been frequently used in the past (cf.
Male genitalia photos were taken using an Olympus SZX 10 UC 30 camera attached to a Zeiss microscope and operated via the software ANALYSIS docum and Olympus Soft Imaging Solutions GmbH Version 5.1 (Build 2677). No stacking was used on these images. Habitus photos were taken using a Canon EOS 5D Mark II DSLR camera with a Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1–5× macro lens and a Canon MT-24EX Macro Twin Lite flash with custom-made light diffusors. The camera was mounted on a motorized Stackshot rail (Cognisys) and operated via the software ZERENE STACKER (Zerene Systems) that was also used for stacking the images. Measurement data of body length (BL) and the ratio (BL/BW) between body length and maximum body width (BW) was first tested for normality with a Shapiro-Wilk normality test in R (R Core Team, 2016). Normality was rejected for at least one species x sex category for both measurements. We therefore used the non-parametric Wilcoxon rank sum test of independent samples (also known as the Mann-Whitney U test, or the Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test). In order to evaluate the variation between species, we have also included specimens from North America and Asia.
Metadata for specimens included in the molecular analysis. Column four gives GenBank accession numbers.
Species | Extr. ID | Ext method | CO1 Acc | Stage | from | Country, province, locality | Date | Leg. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Saperda p. lapponica | JB941 | Qiagen | MF491465 | larva | Salix lapponum | Norway, Hedmark, Ljørdalen | 27.06.2013 | Torstein Kvamme |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB942 | Qiagen | MF491467 | larva | Salix lapponum | Norway, Hedmark, Engerdal | 27.06.2013 | Torstein Kvamme |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB946 | Qiagen | MF491463 | larva | Salix lapponum | Norway, Hedmark, Ljørdalen | 27.06.2013 | Torstein Kvamme |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB949 | Qiagen | MF491468 | larva | Salix lapponum | Sweden, Lule lappmark, Kiruna | 24.06.2013 | Torstein Kvamme |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB950 | Qiagen | MF491462 | larva | Salix lapponum | Norway, Hedmark, Trysil | 27.06.2013 | Torstein Kvamme |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB016 | GeneMole | Failed | adult | Sweden, Torne Lappmark, Silkimuotka | 28.VI.1948 | N. Höglund | |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB017 | GeneMole | Failed | adult | Sweden, Torne Lappmark, Silkimuotka | 28.VI.1948 | N. Höglund | |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB021(JB250) | GeneMole | MF491469 | adult | Sweden, Åsele Lappmark, Kittelfjäll | 28.VI.1972 | T-E Leiler | |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB022(JB249) | GeneMole | MF491461 | adult | Sweden, Torne Lappmark, Soppero | 30.VI.1980 | Stig Lundberg | |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB023(JB248) | GeneMole | Failed | adult | Sweden, Torne Lappmark, Soppero | 15.VI.1968 | Stig Lundberg | |
Saperda p. lapponica | JB024(JB251) | GeneMole | MF491460 | adult | Sweden, Lule Lappmark, Messaure | 14.VII.1971 | S. Lundberg & T. Müller | |
Saperda p. populnea | JB945 | Qiagen | MF491471 | larva | Populus tremula | Sweden, Uppland, Uppsala | 07.2013 | Henrik Wallin |
Saperda p. populnea | JB018(JB247) | GeneMole | MF491471 | adult | Sweden, Öland, Räpplinge | 03.V.1976 | Bert Gustafsson | |
Saperda p. populnea | JB019(JB246) | GeneMole | MF491466 | adult | Salix sp. | Sweden, Småland, Åseda | 26.XII.1974 | Bert Gustafsson |
Saperda p. populnea | JB020(JB245) | GeneMole | MF491470 | adult | Salix sp. | Sweden, Uppland, Uppsala | 01.V.1984 | Stig Lundberg |
Saperda p. populnea | JB025(JB252) | GeneMole | MF491459 | adult | Sweden, Norrbotten, Kalix | 30.VI.1994 | S. Lundberg & T. Müller | |
Saperda p. populnea | JB026 | GeneMole | Failed | adult | Sweden, Västerbotten, Umeå | 09.V.1969 | Lars Huggert | |
Saperda p. populnea | JB027 | GeneMole | Failed | adult | Sweden, Halland, Släp | 02.V.1965 | Lars Huggert | |
Saperda p. populnea | JB028 | GeneMole | Failed | adult | Sweden, Västergötland, Amundön | 31.12.1968 | Lars Huggert | |
Saperda p. populnea | JB029 | GeneMole | MF491472 | larva | Populus tremula | Sweden, Uppland, Uppsala | 05.2009 | Henrik Wallin |
Saperda scalaris | JB030 | GeneMole | MF491473 | adult | Quercus robur | Sweden, Uppland, Knutby | 05.2009 | Henrik Wallin |
Saperda similis | JB938(RB122) | Qiagen | MF491458 | larva | Salix caprea | Sweden, Uppland, Uppsala | 07.2013 | Henrik Wallin |
Saperda carcharias | JB944 | Qiagen | MF491456 | larva | Populus tremula | Sweden, Uppland, Knutby | 07.2013 | Henrik Wallin |
Saperda carcharias | JB031 | GeneMole | MF491457 | adult | Sweden, Södermanland, Haninge | 20.IX.2009 | Julio Ferrer | |
Saperda moesta | JB939 | Qiagen | Failed | adult | Populus balsamifera | Canada, Ontario, Ottawa | 07.07.1961 | S.D. Hicks |
Saperda tulari | JB943 | Qiagen | Failed | adult | Populus fremontii | USA, California, Turlock | 24.05.1955 | R.R. Snelling |
Oberea oculata | JB948 | Qiagen | MF491455 | larva | Salix caprea | Sweden, Uppland, Knutby | 07.2013 | Henrik Wallin |
Stems and branches were cut from shrubs of Salix lapponum at localities where the host plant was abundant. Only host material with visible attacks was collected. At one locality near the road, the shrubs had been cut by ditch cleaning machines and infested branches were collected from the ground. The infested stems and branches of Salix lapponum were placed in rearing cabinets stored at room temperature. Most of the material was collected from mid-May to the beginning of June, shortly after snowmelt.
The species nomenclature follows
Specific information on examined specimens is mentioned under each species in the section “Taxonomy”. The dates and other information were copied from the labels. In some cases, additional information provided by collectors has been added.
CAEL Collection Arne E. Laugsand
CBE Collection Bengt Ehnström, Nås, Sweden
CCH Collection Carolus Holzschuh, Villach, Austria
CHW Collection Henrik Wallin, Uppsala, Sweden
CMD Collection Michail Danilevsky, Moscow, Russia
COS Collection Ove Sørlibråten, Mysen, Norway
CPKS Collection Per Kristian Solevåg, Lier, Norway
CPS Collection Pesarini & Sabbadini, Milano, Italy
CRP Collection Roger Petterson, Laxbacken, Sweden
CTK Collection Torstein Kvamme, Ås, Norway
CUN Collection Ulf Nylander, Gävle, Sweden
CÅL Collection Åke Lindelöw, Uppsala, Sweden
NIBIO Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Ås, Norway
ZMUM Zoological Museum of Moscow University
BL Body length
BW Body width
HT Holotype
PT Paratype
There are 69 published and released 5-prime end fragments of COI in Genbank and Bold of Saperda. The ultrametric strict clock tree from Beast recovered all S. populnea specimens in one monophyletic clade, apart from one released sequence from genbank (KF247304) (Fig.
Amplification of the 3-prime end fragment of COI was successful for all specimens collected in the 1970s or later, but failed for all specimens from the 1960s or earlier (Tab.
The genetic distance between S. populnea and any of the other Saperda species apart from S. bilineatocollis, was larger, between 9.82–19.34%. The smallest interspecific distance was between S. populnea and S. bilineatocollis (2.09–2.60%) followed by S. carcharias and S. similis (2.59%). The distance between S. populnea and S. bilineatocollis (2.09–2.60%) overlaps with the distance within S. populnea (0–2.35%). The COI fragment of S. similis is the first DNA sequence released of this species.
The body length, among the examined specimens, was significantly smaller in S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. than in S. populnea populnea both for males (Wilcoxon p = 1.066 e-08) and for females (Wilcoxon p = 5.802 e-07) (Fig.
The subspecies are not diagnosable based on body length in the sense requiring 75% of individuals of subspecies A to be outside the distribution of 99% of subspecies B (
Body shape measured as the ratio of total body length to maximum body width of males and females of Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758) and S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. No significant difference between the subspecies of the same sex according to a non-parametric Wilcoxon rank sum test was found.
Type species. Cerambyx carcharias Linnaeus, 1758
Saperda carcharias (Linnaeus, 1758: 394).
Cerambyx carcharias Linnaeus, 1758 (original combination)
Examined specimens.
Saperda carcharias (Linnaeus, 1758: 394)
Sweden: 1 ♂ BL 24.0 mm, Uppland, Tuna Hässelby, 1980-05-05, ex larva from Populus, leg. H. Wallin, CHW; 1 ♂ BL 21.0 mm, Södermanland, Stockholm, 1993-09, leg. H. Wallin, CHW.
Saperda (Saperda) similis Laicharting, 1784: 31
Sweden: 1 ♂ BL 16.8 mm, Uppland, Knutby, 1995-06-05, ex larva from Salix, leg. H. Wallin, CHW; 1 ♂ BL 18.0 mm, Småland, Näsby, Bo, 1975-06-16, leg. W. Kronblad, CHW.
Saperda scalaris scalaris (Linnaeus, 1758: 394)
Cerambyx scalaris Linnaeus, 1758: 394 (original combination)
Sweden: 1 ♂ BL 13.8 mm, Uppland, Steninge, 1974-10-26, ex larva from Quercus, leg. H. Wallin, CHW; 1 ♂ BL 13.2 mm, Uppland, Biskops-Arnö, 1973-05-12, ex larva from Quercus, leg. H. Wallin, CHW.
Saperda perforata (Pallas, 1773: 723)
Cerambyx perforata Pallas, 1773: 723 (original combination)
Sweden: 1 ♂ BL 13.2 mm, Uppland, Uppsala, Hågadalen, 1981-06-14, leg. H. Wallin, CHW; 1 ♂ BL 13.0 mm, Uppland, Länna, 1974-06, leg. H. Wallin, CHW.
Saperda gilanense (Shapovalov, 2013: 139)
Compsidia gilanense Shapovalov, 2013: 139 (original combination)
Iran: PT ♂ BL 11.5 mm, Gassan-Kiade prov., Cefidrouda, leg. B. Ilin, 1916-04-23/24,
Saperda quercus quercus Charpentier, 1825: 224
Saperda quercus Charpentier, 1825: 224 (original combination)
Greece: 1 ♂ BL 14.0 mm, BW 3.5 mm, Peloponnese, Skala, Lakonia, Evrotas riv., 1994-04-24, leg. Dulik & Jeniš, CHW; 1 ♀ BL 14.0 mm, Sparti, 1991-05-31, leg. Sobota, CHW.
Saperda bacillicornis Pesarini & Sabbadini, 1996: 116
China: HT ♂ (BL not mentioned for the HT but overall BL is 9.1-10.3 mm), Qinghai, 40 km S Huangyuang, 1990-07-06/08, leg. Nikodym, CPS (photo examination).
Saperda bilineatocollis Pic, 1924: 19.
China: HT ♀ BL 11.0 mm, Shanghai,
Saperda innotatipennis Pic, 1910:
Russia: HT ♀ BL 10.0 mm, Siberia, ex coll. Maurice Pic,
Saperda messageei Breuning, 1962: 10
Laos: HT ♀, Vientiane Province, Tha Ngone, 1971-07-03, ex coll. J.A. Rondon,
Saperda moesta moesta Le Conte, 1850: 234.
Canada: 1 ♂ BL 8.0 mm, Brittania, Hts., Ontario, 1961-07-07, on Populus balsamifera, leg. S.D. Hicks,
Saperda moesta tulari (Felt & Joutel, 1904: 70)
USA: 1 ♂ BL 10.0 mm, California, Stanislaus Co., Turlock, 1955-05-24, leg. R.R. Snelling,
Saperda populnea balsamifera (Motschulsky, 1860), stat. n.
Compsidia balsamifera Motschulsky, 1860: 151 (original combination).
Russia: 1 ♂ BL 9.5 mm, “less pubescent, “black” form”, S. Sachalin, Tomari, Spamberg 850 m, 1976-07-26, leg. W. Dolin, CCH; 1 ♀ BL 10.5 mm, “less pubescent black form”, Minusinsk (Siberia, Krasnojarsk region), leg. K. Ehnberg (id 772),
Cerambyx
populneus
Linnaeus, 1758: 394 (original combination). There are three males preserved at
Cerambyx
decempunctatus
De Geer, 1775: 78 (synonymized by
Leptura
betulina
Geoffroy, 1785: 78 (synonymised by
Saperda
salicis
Zetterstedt, 1818: 258 (synonymised by Gyllenhal, 1827, Dejean, 1835;
Saperda
populi
Duméril, 1860: 607 (synonymised by
Saperda
ab.
bickhardti
Sattler, 1918: 200 (synonymised by
Saperda
f.
kavani
Roubal, 1933: 133 (synonymised by
Saperda
ab.
quadripunctata
Podaný, 1953: 52 (synonymised by
Sweden: 1 ♀ BL 12.5 mm, ~1818, Skåne, SE Lund, Räften Abusa etc., (insect pin supplied with a small bright yellow label), ex coll. J.V. Zetterstedt,
Habitus (dorsal view). a ♀ Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758), Knutby (Uppland), Sweden, 13.5 mm b ♀ S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Ljørdalen, Norway, 12.5 mm c ♀ S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Kiruna (Lappland), Sweden, 12,0 mm d ♂ S. populnea populnea, Uppsala (Uppland), Sweden, 11.5 mm e ♂ S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Ljørdalen, Norway, 10.5 mm f ♂ S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Kiruna (Lappland), Sweden, 10.0 mm. Scale bar 10 mm.
The following specimens are available through Boldsystems Public Data Portal and
A medium-sized and subcylindrical species with body length 9.0–15.0 mm according to e.g.
Head in females. Frons convex and broader than long (about 4.7 times broader than the width of one eye lobe), eyes with lower eye lobes longer than broad and, as long as, or slightly longer than gena below. Head with frons more or less “square-formed” in many female specimens, genae straight and acutely narrowing towards mouthparts (Fig.
Morphological characteristics of S. populnea populnea are based on type specimens preserved at
S. populnea is the most widespread and variable species within the genus, with populations occurring in almost the entire Palaearctic region from the British Isles in the west to Far East of Russia and China in the east (
Females form a “U-shaped mark” in the bark of Populus tremula, on stems and branches 1–2 cm in diameter, forming a lid under which an egg is deposited. Usually, a single larva is tunnelling in the centre of the branch of living aspens, where the host tree responds by forming a more or less distinct gall (
The preferred host tree is Populus tremula as a number of authors have claimed (Tab.
Host tree species of Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758) based on data from literature.
Host tree species | Reference |
---|---|
Populus tremulae L. |
|
Populus spp. |
|
P. nigra L. |
|
P. nigra var. thevestina |
|
P. nigra var. italica |
|
P. alba L. |
|
P. canadensis Moench |
|
P. cahtayana Redh. |
|
P. simonii Carr. |
|
P. pseudosimonii Kitag. |
|
P. davidiana Dode. |
|
P. tomentosa Carr. |
|
P. xiaozhuanica W.Y.Hsu & Liang |
|
P. nigra x P. deltoides (Canadian poplar) |
|
Populus x wettsteinii (Hybrid aspen) |
|
Populus x euramericana |
|
P. tremula x P. tremuloides |
|
P. alba x glandulosa |
|
Salix spp. |
|
S. caprea L. |
|
S. phylicifolia L. |
|
S. alba L. |
|
S. cinerea L. |
|
S. viminalis L. |
|
Fraxinus excelsior L. |
|
Bischofia javanica Blume |
|
Corylus sp. |
|
Betula sp. |
|
Quercus glauca Thunb. |
|
Holotype: ♂
The following specimens collected in Finland and available (through Boldsystems Public Data Portal) for photo examination includes: 1 ♀ COLFA181-10, Lapland, Inari, 1980-07-11, leg. Erkki Laasonen, id MP00443,
A relatively small to medium-sized and subcylindrical subspecies with body length 9.5–13.0 mm in females and 8.0–12.0 mm in males, according to measurements from the present study. Body 3.1 times longer than wide in females and 3.4 times longer than wide in males (Fig.
Head in females. Frons convex and broader than long (about 5 times broader than the width of one eye lobe), eyes with lower eye lobes slightly longer than broad and as long as gena below it. Genae posteriorly with long fringes of yellowish or whitish hairs and genae evenly narrowing towards mouthparts resulting in head being more “rounded” (Fig.
morphological characteristics are mainly based on type specimens, either collected on, or reared from branches of Salix lapponum. S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. is separated from S. populnea populnea by the overall smaller body size, shorter antennae in both sexes, reduced pubescence on thorax and elytra, mainly yellowish to whitish pubescence, reduced or absent pubescence on scutellum and short frons in females which is giving the appearance of a rounded head (Fig.
Aedeagi (a–d dorsal view e–f lateral view), parameres with median lobes (g–j dorsal view k–l lateral view), sclerite inside internal sac (m–n) and tergite VIII in males (o–q). a Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758), Joensuu, Finland b S. populnea populnea, Umeå (Västerbotten), Sweden c S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Ljørdalen, Norway d Soppero (Lappland), Sweden e S. populnea populnea Joensuu, Finland f S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Silkimuotka, Finland g Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758), Släp (Halland), Sweden h S. populnea populnea, Sillre (Medelpad), Sweden i S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Ljørdalen, Norway j S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Kittelfjäll (Västerbotten), Sweden; k: S. populnea populnea, Uppsala (Uppland) l S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Enontekiö, Finland m Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758), Uppsala, Sweden n S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Kiruna, Sweden o Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758), Uppsala, Sweden p S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Trysil: Ljørdalen, Norway q S. populnea lapponica ssp. n., Kiruna, Sweden.
The name is an adjective used as a substantive in the genitive case derived from the specific name of the host plant Salix lapponum.
The distribution of S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. is within the distribution of Salix lapponum in Fennoscandia (
Hind wings. a ♀ Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758) reared from Populus tremula L., Uppland, Knivsta, Sweden. A AP vein B AA vein C CuA vein D AA3+4 vein E CuA3+4 vein F Mp4 vein G Mp3 vein H medial spur vein I RA vein J MP vein K radial cell L RP-MP vein b ♀ Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n. reared from Salix lapponum L., Trysil: Ljørdalen Norway c ♀ Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n. reared from Salix lapponum L., Luleå Lappmark, Gallugas 20 km W. Kiruna, Sweden. Scale bar 10 mm.
The attacks are similar to S. populnea populnea where females form a “U-shaped lid” in the bark under which an egg is deposited. Stems and branches around 1–2 cm in diameter are used. However, normally no galls are formed by the host tree (Fig.
In addition, parasites including wasps and flies frequently attack S. populnea populnea (
Host tree attacks. a extensive attacks of Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n., on the entire stem and branches of Salix lapponum L. from Trysil: Ljørdalen, Norway b three adjacent attacks, including an exit hole, of Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n., on a stem of Salix lapponum L. from Gällivare (Lappland), Sweden c single attacks, including exit holes, of Saperda populnea populnea (Linnaeus, 1758), on a stems of Populus tremula L. (beetles emerged at top: male, bottom: female), from Knivsta (Uppland), Sweden.
The new subspecies S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. is relatively similar to S. populnea balsamifera stat. n. According to the original description, S. populnea balsamifera stat. n. is characterised by narrow body and weak pubescence with very small dots on elytra. There is no information on body length in the original description by
We agree with
Saperda gilanense was described based on specimens from Northern Iran (
The remaining species within the subgenus subgenus Compsidia include S. bacillicornis Pesarini & Sabbadini, 1996, Saperda bilineatocollis Pic, 1924 and S. messageei Breuning, 1962.
S. bacillicornis is easily separated from S. populnea populnea by the narrow and dorso-ventrally flattened prothorax and the antennal segments uniformly covered with a whitish pubescence from 3rd antennomere and not annulated. S. bilineatocollis (Fig.
The male genitalia of all other Palaearctic species of Saperda differ from both S. populnea populnea and S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. Each species has unique male genitalia, although the male genitalia appear to be relatively similar between S. carcharias and S. similis. These two species also had a relatively small genetic distance (2.59%). The most different and striking sclerites inside the internal sac are found in S. scalaris, where they exhibit a broad and “fork-shaped” structure. We found no difference in hind wing morphology between S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. and S. populnea populnea, although statistical analysis with the use of selected landmarks on hind wings has been applied to differentiate two other cerambycid species: Leiopus nebulosus L. and L. linnei
The other species synonymised by
S. salicis was described from specimens collected on Salix viminalis L. at Abusa near Lund in southern Sweden (
That Saperda populnea populnea and Saperda populnea lapponica ssp. n. were not reciprocally monophyletic (Figs
The trinomial subspecies remain a contentious hierarchical level in zoological taxonomy (
S. populnea populnea and S. populnea lapponica ssp. n. fit this definition perfectly. However, we believe that while authors are proposing various new subspecies definitions (
We thank Mikhail Danilevsky (Moscow), Larry Bezark (Sacramento, California) and Dan Heffern (Houston, Texas) for support during various stages of this work. Rasa Bukontaite (