The histo structure of galls induced by aphids as a useful taxonomic character: the case of Rectinasus (Hemiptera, Aphididae, Eriosomatinae)

Abstract

Morphological differentiation of gall tissues induced on plants may play a role to characterize the real taxonomic position of the gall inducer. We verified this hypothesis with galls induced by Rectinasus buxtoni on Pistacia palaestina. There is controversy about the taxonomic localization of genus Rectinasus: in one classification it is situated with the genera Forda and Paracletus while in another it is linked to the genera Geoica and Baizongia. Histological examination of the walls of the galls reveals the presence of two opposed vascular bundles and an inner surface of the gall with cavities. These features place Rectinasus in the same group as Geoica and Baizongia, and not with Paracletus and Forda, whose galls have a different histological structure, as generally admitted.