Sycophila variegata

A member of the family Eurytomidae, this wasp is parasitoid of cynipid wasps.

The common gall hosts of this species are; Andricus curruptrix agamic, A. grossulariae sexual, A. kollari agamic, Biorhiza pallida sexual. The flight times for this wasp are during the month of june.

The female wasp measures in at 1.6-2.8mm with an average of 1.9mm.
The head is yellow with a dark back, hairy and granulated. The eyes are pale red/brown and the ocelli are red. The antennae are dark to mid brown with long pale hairs. with a long, swollen dark pedicle and a slender gold brown scape. There is one ring and 5 funicular segments, which leads to a heavy club.
The thorax varies in colour from vritually all yellow through to a considerable amount of dark brown with white hairs. Deep and full length notaulices. The tegulae are dirty yellow, leading to the wings which have pale veins and neutral coloured hairs. There is also a dark fascia which rounds away from the wings edge and below the stigma. The legs are yellow beneath and dark brown above, giving a striped appearance. The 5 tarsel segments are yellow with dark claws.
The gaster (abdomen) is petiolate and varies from dark brown and glossy with a small patch of yellow on the side, to almost all yellow. It is segmented with a single main segment like in Synergus and the petiole is long. It is hairy along the lengths of the ovipositor sheaths below which project a fraction beneath but run along the bottom of the gaster.

The male is 1.1-2.1mm averaging at 1.6mm in length.
The head is from predominantly brown to yellow, but always has a dark brown back and coriaceous. The mid sized eyes are pale red in colour with white ocelli. The antennae have one ring and 4 funicular segments and are dark and hairy with a heavy club, as well as a yellow top and dark underneath scape and a pedicel.
The thorax is again variable from brown to yellow. The notaulices are deep and complete. The tegulae are starw coloured and the wings are clear and have a dark which is rounded away from the wing edge. The marginal vein is dar brown with a distinct clear area before the stigmal vein. The legs have brown coxae femora and tibia with yellow joints ans 5 yellow brown tarsel segments and dark claws.
The petiolate, small, short and blocky gaster is glossy brown with more or less yellow colouring below.

More detailed descriptions and identification keys are available from Robin Williams at the British Plant Gall Society.

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