North-Western Journal of Zoology Vol. 4, No. 2, 2008, pp.189-202 [Online: Vol.4, 2008: 23] Species richness of oak gall wasps (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) and identification of associated inquilines and parasitoids on two oak species in western Iran Javad NAZEMI1, Ali Asghar TALEBI1,*, Seyed Ebrahim SADEGHI2, George MELIKA3 and Aurel LOZAN4 1. Dept. of Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University, P.O.Box:14115-336, Tehran, Iran, 2. Division of Plant Pests and Diseases, Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, Tehran, Iran, 3. Systematic Parasitoid Laboratory, Plant Protection and Soil Conservation Service of County Vas, Kelcz-Adelffy str. 6, Kőszeg, 9730 Hungary; 4. Biological Centre, Institute of Entomology, Branišovská 31, 37005 Ceské Budìjovice, Czech Republic * Corresponding author: A.A. Talebi, e-mail:
[email protected] Abstract. The cynipid gall wasps (Hym., Cynipidae) are among the main insects associated with oaks (Quercus sp.) in Iran. The objective of this study was to infer the inquiline species and the parasitoids associated with the cynipid gall wasps while determining species richness of gall wasps in oak forests of Kurdistan, Ilam and Kermanshah provinces in the west of Iran. The cynipid gall wasps were collected from buds and leaves of Quercus infectoria Olivier and Q. brantii Lindley during 2004-2006. The collected galls were maintained under laboratory conditions at room temperature (20-25 ºC) in transparent plastic boxes until the cynipids, inquilines and their parasitoid adults were emerged. As a result of this study, 28, 22 and 4 gall wasp species were collected in Kurdistan, Kermanshah and Ilam provinces, respectively.