Oak gall wasps (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae, Cynipini) are characterized by possession of complex cyclically parthenogenetic life cycles and the ability to induce a wide diversity of highly complex species- and generation-specific galls on oaks and other Fagaceae. The galls support species-rich, closed communities of inquilines and parasitoids that have become a model system in community ecology. We...

Background and Purpose: Dryocosmus kuriphilus is a globally invasive insect pest, spreading very quickly in new habitats and making serious damage to sweet chestnut forests in Croatia and in several other European countries. Indigenous parasitoid species trophically associated with oak gallwasps have adapted to this new host but cannot effectively regulate its population density. Classical biol...

A new genus of oak gallwasp, Coffeikokkos Pujade-Villar & Melika, gen. n., is described from Costa Rica. Diagnostic characters and generic limits of the new genus are discussed in detail. The new genus includes Coffeikokkos copeyensis Pujade-Villar & Melika, sp. n., which induces galls on stems of Quercus bumelioides, an endemic oak to Costa Rica, Honduras and Panama. The new species and galls ...

Mohammed Reza Zargaran, Nadir Erbilgin, and Youbert Ghosta (2012) Changes in oak gall wasps species diversity (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) in relation to the presence of oak powdery mildew (Erysiphe alphitoides). Zoological Studies 51(2): 175-184. Plant-mediated interactions usually lead to multipartite interactions in a community of organisms. To evaluate the impact of oak powdery mildew Erysiphe ...

The cuticle of certain insect body parts can be hardened by the addition of metals, and because niche separation may require morphological adaptations, inclusion of such metals may be linked to life history traits. Here, we analysed the distribution and enrichment of metals in the mandibles and ovipositors of a large family of gall-inducing wasps (Cynipidae, or Gall-Wasps) (plus one gall-induci...