Search

A new species of fly, Fergusonina metrosiderosi Taylor sp.n. (Diptera: Fergusoninidae) [and its associated nematode, Fergusobia pohutukawa Davies sp.n. (Tylenchida: Neotylenchidae)], is described from unilocular basal shoot-bud galls on Pohutukawa (New Zealand Christmas Tree), Metrosideros excelsa Banks ex Gaertn. (Myrtaceae). The fly is characterized by the short, sclerotized postabdomen of the female, distinctly grey wings, reduction in length of the reclinate orbital, postocellar and vertical setae, undifferentiation of the ocellar setae, supernumerary setation of the genae, and three pairs of scutellar setae rather than two. The dorsal shield is restricted to a few raised sclerotized spicules on the first to third thoracic segments of the larva and epidermis of the puparium. The nematode is characterized by the combinations of arcuate shape, small ‘a’ ratio, swollen cuticle, small cephalic region with elevated circum-oral area with a flat tip, coarse annulation and relatively slender conical tail of the parthenogenetic female, and coarse annulation, long bursa and angular spicule with short, broad, offset manubrium of the male. Fergusonina metrosiderosi sp.n. and Fergusobia pohutukawa sp.n. represent the first record of the fly-nematode association from the host genus Metrosideros, and the first record from New Zealand. Aspects of the biology and biogeography of the fly-nematode association are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The bacterial microbiome of psyllids has been studied for decades, with a strong focus on the primary and secondary endosymbionts capable of providing essential amino acids for the insects' diet and therefore playing a key role in the insects' ability to radiate on novel plant hosts. Here, we combine metabarcoding analysis of the bacterial communities hosted by psyllids with a multi-gene phylogenetic analysis of the insect hosts to determine what factors influence the bacterial diversity of the psyllids' microbiomes, especially in the context of the dispersal and evolutionary radiation of these insects in Aotearoa New Zealand. Using multi-gene phylogenetics with COI, 18S and EF-1α sequences from 102 psyllid species, we confirmed for the first time monophyly for all the six genera of native/endemic Aotearoa New Zealand psyllids, with indications that they derive from at least six dispersal events to the country. This also revealed that, after its ancestral arrival, the genus Powellia has radiated onto a larger and more diverse range of plants than either Psylla or Ctenarytaina, which is uncommon amongst monophyletic psyllids globally. DNA metabarcoding of the bacterial 16S gene here represents the largest dataset analysed to date from psyllids, including 246 individuals from 73 species. This provides novel evidence that bacterial diversity across psyllid species is strongly associated with psyllid phylogenetic structure, and to a lesser degree to their host plant association and geographic distribution. Furthermore, while the strongest co-phylogenetic signals were derived from the primary and secondary symbionts, a signal of phylosymbiosis was still retained among the remaining taxa of the bacterial microbiome, suggesting potential vertical transmission of bacterial lineages previously unknown to have symbiotic roles., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2023 Martoni et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Acizzia credoensis sp. n. is described from a single population on the native plant, Solanum lasiophyllum, from semi-arid Western Australia. The host range of Acizzia solanicola Kent & Taylor, initially recorded as damaging eggplant, S. melongena, in commercial crops and gardens and on wild tobacco bush, S. mauritianum in eastern Australia, is expanded to include the following Solanaceae: rock nightshade, S. petrophilum, cape gooseberry, Physalis peruviana, and an undetermined species of angel's trumpet Brugmansia and Datura. New Zealand specimens of A. solanicola collected in early 2012 from S. mauritianum are the first record for this species from outside Australia, and possibly represent a very recent incursion. The potential for the solanaceous-inhabiting Psyllidae to vector Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum, an economically important plant pathogen, on native Australian Solanaceae is discussed. The occurrence of A. credoensis and A. solanicola on native Australian Solanum supports the Australian origin for the solanaceous-inhabiting Acizzia psyllids.