Disholcaspis (cinerosa) pallens, new species

GALL.—Practically identical with that of Disholcaspis (cinerosa) cinerosa (Bassett). Perhaps more often elongate and not as strictly spherical, more often drawn out to a slender point at base; averaging a bit smaller, up to 21.0 mm., mature galls averaging nearer 18.0 in diameter (Figure 2).

HOST. — Quercus oleoides. This narrow- and evergreen-leaved white oak is the common representative of the Q. virginiana complex in the northeastern portion of Mexico.

RANGE.—San Luis Potosi : Valles, 14 N, 900'. Probably confined to a central portion of the more eastern Mexican lowlands, iu- cluding the easternmost portions of the state of San Luis Potosi.

LIFE HISTORY.—Adults : December 7, 14, January 1, 7, 8, 17, 20. Two-thirds of the emergence over by the first of January, but goodly emergence continuing throughout most of January.

Two species of this complex have been previously described. The first, D. cinerosa (Bassett, 1881, Canad. Ent. 13:110) is widespread throughout the eastern two-thirds of Texas on the Texas live oak, Q. virginiana. Disholcaspis unicolor (Kinsey, 1920, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist. 42:316) came from near Saltillo, in the northeastern part of Mexico. The present species, pallens, comes from a locality about 275 miles further south, halfway down the eastern Mexican coast and not far inland from Tampico. The locality, Valles, is on the Laredo-Mexico City highway. This is one of the relatively few cases of an Eastern American group having affinities in Eastern Mexico; for the host of the species, namely Q. oleoides of the Q. virginiana complex, belongs to one of the few groups of oaks which range without material interruption across the Rio Grande. An instance of a similar range on oaks of the Q. breviloba group is discussed under Cynips (mellea) sagata, newly described in the present paper. See sagata for a further discussion.

- Alfred Kinsey: (1938) New Mexican gall wasps (Hymenoptera, Cynipidae) IV^©