Careopalpis yotvata Dorchin, 2019

Dorchin, Netta, Danon, Gilad & Dor, Roi, 2019, Gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) associated with Suaeda (Chenopodiaceae) in Israel and the Mediterranean Basin, Israel Journal of Entomology (Oxford, England) 49 (2), pp. 99-134 : 125

Careopalpis yotvata Dorchin , n. sp.

LSID: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:590DECE0-0258-411D-B63E-9E49998D3499 .

Etymology: The species is named after Yotvata salt marsh —the site in which it was first discovered—where a small population of its rare host plant is found. The name is a noun in apposition.

Description: Similar to C. latita except for the following.

Gall and biology. This species develops without apparent gall formation in leaves of Suaeda vermiculata . Its presence in the leaves becomes apparent only after adult emergence, when empty pupal exuviae are found stuck in the leaves. It was reared only in winter and early spring (February–March) but it is possible that adults are present in other winter months in which the host plant has not been sampled. It is unlikely that C. yotvata is active in summer and fall given its extremely harsh habitat, characterized by very high temperatures and exceedingly limited precipitation.

Adult. Thorax: Wing length 1.23–1.63 mm in female (n=22), 1.10–1.60 mm in male (n=15).

Larva. Unknown.

Pupa. Unknown.

Holotype: ♀, Israel: Avrona salt marsh Nature Reserve [29°49'35.8"N 35°02'34.7"E], 7.iii.2017, N. Dorchin, reared from Suaeda vermiculata leaf. Mounted on permanent microscope slide in Euparal (SMNHTAU).

Paratypes (all from Suaeda vermiculata ): 11♀ 6♂, same data as holotype ; 8♀ 7♂, Yotvata salt marsh Nature Reserve, 17.ii.2015, N. Dorchin.

Distribution: Israel: Yotvata and Avrona salt marshes. No doubt the species also occurs in Jordan on the same host plant.

Remarks: Careopalpis yotvata does not differ morphologically from C. latita and C. akko that are found on other Suaeda spp. in Israel. It differs from C. lanceocercis by the ovoid rather than fusiform shape of the apical lamella of the female ovipositor. For comparison with non-Israeli species see remarks section under C. latita . Suaeda vermiculata , the host plant of C. yotvata , is a rare plant in Israel, and is virtually limited to the localities where we sampled it. While Suaeda aegyptiaca co-occurs in the same habitats, sampling that plant south of the Dead Sea area never yielded gall midges, whereas in the northern parts of its distribution range it hosts C. latita . It is therefore possible that C. yotvata became separated from C. latita and established as a distinct species on S. vermiculata in areas where S. aegyptiaca is not suitable as a host plant. This hypothesis is supported by our molecular data ( Fig. 48), which suggest that C. yotvata and C. latita are more closely related to each other than to any other Careopalpis species in Israel.