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Abstract Many herbivorous insect species are capable of hijacking plant development to induce novel plant organs called galls. In most groups of galling insects, the insect organs and molecular signals involved in gall induction are poorly understood. We focused on gall wasps (Hymenoptera:Cynipidae), the second largest clade of gall inducers (~1,400 spp.), for which the developmental stages and organs responsible for gall development are unclear. We investigated the female metasomal anatomy of 69 gall-inducing and 29 non-gall-inducing species across each of the major lineages of Cynipoidea, to test relationships between this lifestyle and the relative size of secretory organs. We confirmed that the venom apparatus in gall-inducing species is greatly expanded, although gall-inducing lineages vary in the relative size of these glands. Among these gallers, we measured the largest venom gland apparatus relative to body size ever recorded in insects. Non-galling inquiline species are accompanied by a reduction of this apparatus. Comparative microscopic analysis of venom glands suggests varying venom gland content across the lineages. Some oak gallers also had enlarged accessory glands, a lipid-rich organ whose function remains unclear, and which has not been previously studied in relation to gall formation. Together, the massive expansion of secretory organs specifically in gall-inducing species suggests a role of these secretions in the process of gall formation, and the variance in size of venom glands, accessory glands, and the contents of these glands among gallers, suggests that gall formation across this clade is likely to employ a diversity of molecular strategies. 

We review the genera of Phanacidini and provide updated diagnoses for each genus and a new key to the four genera. We also redescribe the enigmatic herb gall wasp Diakontschukia saussureae Diakontschuk, 2001 (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Phanacidini), based on a specimen collected in Haopingsi Nature Reserve, China. This is the first record of the tribe Phanacidini in China. Lastly, we provide extensive commentary on the validity of diagnostic characters that have been used for Phanacidini relative to other herb gall wasp tribes. We carried out a survey of Aulacideini, Aylacini, and Phanacidini to identify whether the length of F1 relative to F2 was of diagnostic value at the tribal level, finding that F1 was always conspicuously longer than F2 in Phanacidini and Aylacini but at most subequal to F2 in Aulacideini, suggesting that this is indeed a valuable character for diagnosing herb gall wasp tribes. Other characters discussed are the closure of the marginal cell and the dimensions of the mesopectus. 

Two new species of Ormyrus Westwood, 1832 (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Ormyridae) are described: Ormyrus myrae Nastasi, Alcorn, & Davis sp. nov. and Ormyrus bellbowl Nastasi, Alcorn, & Davis sp. nov. Species of Ormyrus are parasitoids in insect galls, especially those induced by Cynipidae (Hymenoptera: Cynipoidea), and the new species are parasitoids in galls induced by Antistrophus Walsh, 1869 (Cynipidae: Aulacideini) on rosinweeds of the genus Silphium L. (Asteraceae: Heliantheae). Ormyrus bellbowl is a parasitoid of Antistrophus meganae Tooker & Hanks, 2004 in stems of S. terebinthinaceum Jacq., as well as other species of Antistrophus inducing inconspicuous galls in stems of S. laciniatum L. Ormyrus myrae is a parasitoid of Antistrophus laciniatus Gillette, 1891 on S. laciniatum and S. terebinthinaceum; the latter represents a new association of A. laciniatus with S. terebinthinaceum. Previous records of O. labotus Walker, 1843 in association with Antistrophus species are suggested as the results of misidentifications.  

We review the tribes of Cynipidae that are known to contain gall inducers on herbaceous plants, which are presently classified in four tribes: Aulacideini, Aylacini, Diastrophini, and Phanacidini. We provide a revised key to these tribes, diagnostic characters for each tribe, and an updated key to brachypterous and apterous Cynipoidea including the inclusion of brachyptery in Phanacidini. We propose the replacement name Eubothrus Förster, 1869 for the genus Isocolus Förster, 1869 (Aulacideini) as the latter is a homonym of the trilobite genus Isocolus Angelin, 1854 (Trilobita: Isocolidae). We also provide a checklist of world herb gall wasp species including host plant and geographic distribution data. Overall, we report 166 species of herb gall wasps, finding 96 species in 11 genera in Aulacideini, 6 species in 3 genera in Aylacini, and 39 species in 4 genera in Phanacidini, as well as 25 gall-inducing species in 3 genera in Diastrophini, of which 11 are or probably are associated with herbaceous plants. Online Lucid identification keys and images of all the taxa treated herein are available at: http://www.waspweb.org. 

We describe Diastrophus wushei Davis & Nastasi sp. nov. and D. renai Davis & Nastasi sp. nov., two gall wasp species collected on Wushe Mountain, Taiwan by the late Henry Townes. These species represent the first Diastrophini and potentially the first non-Fagaceae associated species of gall wasp described from Taiwan. We speculate on potential hosts plants for further study and possible avenues to elucidate their biology.  

Distributional checklists of the extant, described species of five superfamilies of Hymenoptera of Canada, Alaska and Greenland are presented. In total, 296 species in 79 genera in 12 families are recorded: 55 species of Ceraphronoidea, classified in 10 genera in 2 families, 205 species of Cynipoidea in 58 genera in 5 families, 30 species of Evanioidea in 5 genera in 3 families of Evanioidea, 2 species of Stephanoidea in 2 genera in 1 family and 4 species of Trigonalyoidea in 4 genera in 1 family. Of the reported species, 281 (in 79 genera in 12 families) are listed from Canada, 31 (in 16 genera in 6 families) from Alaska, and 7 (in 5 genera in 2 families) from Greenland. The list includes 8 new generic records for Canada (1 Ceraphronoidea, 6 Cynipoidea and 1 Evanioidea) and 43 new Canadian species records (13 Ceraphronoidea, 28 Cynipoidea and 2 Evanioidea). For each species in Canada, distribution is tabulated by province or territory, except the province of Newfoundland and Labrador is divided into the island of Newfoundland and the region of Labrador. These checklists are compared with previous Nearctic and Palaearctic surveys, checklists and catalogues.Kleidotoma minimaProvancher, 1883 (Figitidae) is moved from this genus toHexacolaFörster, 1869 to formH. minimum(Provancher, 1883),comb. nov.Amblynotus slossonaeCrawford, 1917 (Figitidae) is moved fromMelanipsWalker, 1835 toAmphithectusHartig, 1840 formingA. slossonae(Crawford, 1917),comb. nov. 

We describe three new aulacideine herb gall wasp species (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Aulacideini) from Kyrgyzstan, a country from which only two Aulacideini species were previously known. One of our new species represents a new genus, which we describe here as Soparia oshensis Nastasi gen. and sp. nov. We describe Panteliella rugosa Nastasi sp. nov., representing a new genus record for Kyrgyzstan. To further facilitate species recognition in Panteliella, we redescribe the genus and the species P. fedtschenkoi; provide a translated description of P. bianchii Vyrzhikovskaya, 1962; comment on complications affecting this genus; and provide a key to Panteliella species. Lastly, we describe Isocolus barakus Nastasi sp. nov., a species with morphology atypical of Isocolus. We provide a key to the Kyrgyz genera of Aulacideini to ensure that they remain diagnosable for future study. Our findings illustrate the continued unveiling of a diverse herb cynipid fauna in Central Asia and a need for further taxonomic study in the region.  

We describe new species in the genus Ceroptres Hartig, 1840 (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Ceroptresini) represented by voucher material sequenced by Ward et al. (2024). We describe 22 new species, all authored by Nastasi, Smith, & Davis: C. anansii sp. nov., C. anzui sp. nov., C. bruti sp. nov., C. curupira sp. nov., C. daleki sp. nov., C. dandoi sp. nov., C. demerzelae sp. nov., C. iktomii sp. nov., C. jabbai sp. nov., C. jarethi sp. nov., C. lokii sp. nov., C. lupini sp. nov., C. mallowi sp. nov., C. promethei sp. nov., C. sandiegoae sp. nov., C. selinae sp. nov., C. soloi sp. nov., C. songae sp. nov., C. swiperi sp. nov., C. thrymi sp. nov., C. tikoloshei sp. nov., and C. zorroi sp. nov. After our taxonomic treatment, the genus Ceroptres includes 43 species, all but three of which are known from North America. Among our new species are two reared from cecidomyiid midge galls, an association previously recorded but without valid taxonomic association. We provide new records for two additional previously described species; we record C. ensiger (Walsh, 1864) from Pennsylvania and confirm characters for the male, and we record C. lanigerae Ashmead, 1885 from Texas. We also examined several putative species corresponding to either C. cornigera Melika & Buss, 2002 and/or C. frondosae Ashmead, 1896, which we regard as a species complex that requires elucidation in future studies. To enable further studies on Ceroptres, we provide an updated key to North American females. Overall, we find that species of Ceroptres are host specialists associated with a single host gall species or several galls that are phylogenetically or ecologically related. We suggest that there are many North American species of Ceroptres, possibly hundreds, still awaiting collection and characterization.  

Aulacidea follioti Barbotin, 1972 (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Aulacideini) is a species of gall wasp inducing stem galls on Sonchus asper (L.) Hill (Asteraceae: Cichorieae). While this species is native to western Europe, we located specimens of this species deposited in several North American collections. The nine specimens we examined suggest that the species is present in several US states and Canadian provinces and has been present in North America since at least 1948. An observation showing the gall and larvae of the species in Oregon (USA) was uploaded to the community science platform iNaturalist in July 2024, confirming that the species is still present in North America. 

Galls are novel plant structures that develop in response to select biotic stressors. These structures, extended phenotypes of the inducer, usually serve to protect and feed the inducer or its progeny. This life history strategy has evolved dozens of times, and tens of thousands of species — including many bacteria, fungi, nematodes, mites and insects — are capable of manipulating plants in this way. The variation in gall phenotypes is extraordinary across species but usually predictable for each species of inducer. We introduce here a new ontology, GallOnt, that facilitates consistent descriptions and the semantic representation of and reasoning over plant gall phenotype data. GallOnt was largely developed from ontologies in the Open Biological and Biomedical Ontology (OBO) Foundry and stands to connect plant gall phenotypes to knowledge derived from model plant systems, including genotype-phenotype and agricultural research. We also introduce the idea of a new gall data standard — Minimum Information for the Description of Galls (MIDG version 0.1) — as a starting point for discussions regarding cecidology best practices.