Acanthococcus populi Matesova, 1967

Gavrilov-Zimin, I. A. & Kurochkin, A. S., 2019, Millennial zoological mystery of medieval Persian scientists, Zoosystematica Rossica (China) 28 (2), pp. 201-227 : 215

Acanthococcus populi Matesova, 1967

(Fig. 12)

Matesova, 1967: 1195; Kozár et al., 2013: 142.

Material examined. Holotype: female, Kazakhstan: Alma-Ata Prov.: Charyn Riv., Sartagoy, on Populus pruinosa , 22.VI.1964 (G. Matesova leg.); paratypes: female with the same data, but on separate slide; 3 females on 3 slides, with the same data, but road between Chilik Vill. and Ayak-Kaykan Vill., on Populus diversifolia , 9.V.1963 (T. Makarov leg.).

Morphological description. Adult female. Body egg-shaped, up to 4 mm long, dark-bordeaux in life, located inside of grey wax sac which totally covers female and oviposited eggs. Antennae 7-segmented, each about 250 µm long. Legs with all segments normally developed, without translucent pores; claw with denticle; claw digitules with clavate apices. Anal apparatus with outer row of spinulae, incomplete inner row of pores and eight long setae, each about two times as long as diameter of anal ring. Multilocular pores absent. Quinquelocular pores, each about 5 µm in diameter, scattered on all ventral surface of body, excluding marginal zone of ventral head, thorax and anterior abdominal sternites. Oval discoidal pores (“cruciform pores” in some authors) each about 3 µm in diameter, forming marginal band on ventral head, thorax and anterior abdominal sternites. Macrotubular ducts slightly differ in size: dorsal ducts, each about 25–30 µm long and 8–10 µm wide forming transverse rows on all tergites, excluding three posterior abdominal tergites, where ducts present along margin only; ventral macrotubular ducts, each about 25 µm long and 7 µm wide, forming transverse rows or bands on abdominal sternites and scattered on thorax and head. Microtubular ducts each about 8 µm long and 1 µm wide, scattered on all dorsal surface of body. Small conical setae with pointed apices, each about 10–15 µm long, forming transverse rows or bands on tergites; large conical setae with blunt apices (each about 30–60 µm long) present along margin of dorsum, 2–4 setae on each margin of each tergite (Fig. 12). Flagellate setae of different sizes forming transverse rows on abdominal sternites and sparsely present on ventral surface of thorax and head. Numerous minute cuticular tubercles covering all dorsal surface of body.

Morphology of adult males and larvae unknown.

Taxonomic note. Kozár et al. (2013) incorrectly placed A. turanicus Matesova, 1967 under synonymy of A. populi Matesova, 1967 . It is a junior synonym of A. salicis ( Borchsenius, 1938) (see below).

Ontogenesis and mode of life. The ontogenesis is similar with other species, discussed here (Fig. 9). Females form dense colonies on trunks and branches of different Populus spp. and Salix spp. Oviposition starts in Late June ( Matesova, 1967).

Distribution. Kazakhstan (Alma-Ata Prov.), China (Tibet).