Feron atrimentum
(agamic)agamic:The agamic (AKA unisexual) generation of an oak gall wasp (cynipini) species consists of only female wasps, which do not mate before laying the eggs which become the male and females of the sexual generation (sexgen).
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Location: lower leaf, between leaf veins, leaf edge
Form:
Cells:
Possible Range:
The gall's range is computed from the range of all hosts that the gall occurs on. In some cases we have evidence that the gall does not occur across the full range of the hosts and we will remove these places from the range. For undescribed species we will show the expected range based on hosts plus where the galls have been observed.
Created Feb 4, 2026 1:47 PM UTC
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Last updated Feb 4, 2026 1:47 PM UTC
Re-establishment of the Nearctic oak cynipid gall wasp genus Feron Kinsey, 1937 (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Cynipini), including the description of six new species
Victor Cuesta-Porta, George Melika, James, A. Nicholls, Graham N. Stone, Juli Pujade-Villar
(2023)
Feron atrimentum (Kinsey, 1922)
Gall. Asexual galls (Fig. 50) are monolocular, conical, flat-based, detachable, on lower leaf margin. Sides nearly straight, flaring slightly at base. Red and yellow striped when fresh, turning to brown and yellow with age. Basal larval cell oval from lateral view, 1.6 mm in diameter, 0.8 mm high, pubescent. Upper surface of larval cell coriaceous with sparse pubescence; brown, darker towards center. Gall height 3.6–4.6 mm, width 3.0–4.6 mm.
Biology. Matching of generations was first presented in Dailey & Sprenger (1973b). Alternate sexual and asexual generations are also confirmed herein using DNA data, with four individuals (three asexual females, one sexual female) sequenced for cytb. Cytb sequences were on average 0.35% divergent between individuals (range 0–0.70%; GenBank accessions OK041496, OQ446191–OQ446193).
Feron atrimentum is associated with Q. douglasii, Q. dumosa, Q. john-tuckeri and Q. lobata (section Quercus, subsection Dumosae). The sexual generation females emerge throughout April and usually oviposit in the lower leaf surface near the margin. Asexual galls develop over the following three months. Pupation occurs during late October to November; asexual females emerge in late winter and oviposit in leaf buds. Sexual generation galls usually reach full size by mid-March (Dailey & Sprenger 1973b).
