Abstract
We inventoried and characterized the kinds of gall, gall-inducing insects and host plants from Serra Geral between August 2013 and July 2014. Two phytophysiognomies, cerrado sensu stricto and caatinga-cerrado, were examined monthly along transects during ca. 4 hours per visit, totaling 48 hours of sampling effort. A total of 49 gall morphotypes were found on 14 species of host plants in 18 genera and 13 families. Fabaceae and Malpighiaceae were the families with the most galls, with 22 and 10 gall morphotypes, respectively. The genera of host plant with the greatest richness of galls were Copaifera L. (n=10), Bauhinia Benth. (n=6), and Mimosa L. (n=5). Galls were found on leaves, buds and stems. The majority of the galls were globoid, glabrous, isolated, and one-chambered. The inducers belong to Coleoptera, Diptera, and Lepidoptera, Cecidomyiidae (Diptera) being the most frequent and diverse gall-inducers. The associated fauna included parasitoids (Hymenoptera), successors (Formicidae), and predators (Pseudoscorpiones), obtained from 13, 2, and 1 gall morphotypes, respectively. Five plant taxa are recorded as hosts of gall-inducing insects for the first time.
Highlights
Galls are the abnormal growth of plant tissues formed due to an increase in cell volume and/or cell number in response to feeding activity, chemical secretions and/or the mere presence of foreign organisms, usually insects or mites (Raman 2007)
Insect galls can be regarded as extended phenotypes of the inducers, unique in that the parasitic arthropod induces a characteristic adaptation within the host plant (Stone & Schonrogge 2003, Carneiro et al 2009b)
This study in Serra Geral found 49 gall morphotypes on 14 species of host plant distributed in 18 genera and 13 families (Table 1; Figures 1-3)
Summary
Galls are the abnormal growth of plant tissues formed due to an increase in cell volume (hypertrophy) and/or cell number (hyperplasy) in response to feeding activity, chemical secretions and/or the mere presence of foreign organisms, usually insects or mites (Raman 2007). The gall-inducing species apparently derives all the benefit and the plant suffers loss of substance, deviations in the direction of growth, disturbances in sap flow, premature decay and other injuries (Stone & Schonrogge 2003). Insect galls can be regarded as extended phenotypes of the inducers, unique in that the parasitic arthropod induces a characteristic adaptation within the host plant (Stone & Schonrogge 2003, Carneiro et al 2009b). The gall morphology and location depend on the plant species and the kind of organism that is causing it.
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