Norbanus draco, Mitroiu, 2015

Mitroiu, Mircea-Dan, 2015, Revision of the Afrotropical species of Norbanus Walker (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae), Zootaxa 3969 (1), pp. 1-103 : 35-37

Norbanus draco sp. nov.

( Figs 51–56 )

Diagnosis. BOTH SEXES. Head with distinct elevation between eye and posterior ocellus ( Figs 53, 56 ). Clypeal margin slightly produced ( Fig. 53 ).

Material examined. Holotype ♀ ( MRAC). D. R. CONGO: “ Congo Belge, P. N.G., Miss. H. De Saeger, II/gc/ 7, 14-viii-52, H. De Saeger. 3940” [fu5–6 and clava missing from both antennae; on triangular card].

Allotype ♂. D. R. CONGO: “ Congo Belge, P. N.G., Miss. H. De Saeger, II/ge/7, 16-ix-1952, H. De Saeger. 4057” ( MRAC).

Additional paratypes. D. R. CONGO: 1 ♀ “ Congo Belge, P. N.G., Miss. H. De Saeger, II/f/17, 20-i-1951, Réc. H. De Saeger. 1144” ( MRAC) . SOUTH AFRICA: 1 ♀ “ S. Africa. R.E. Turner. Brit. Mus. 1923-286.”, “ Port St. John , Pondoland. April 5–30.1923.” ( BMNH) .

Description. FEMALE (holotype). Colour. Head and mesosoma black, with very faint bluish metallic reflections mainly on mesosoma ( Figs 51–53 ); metasoma including ovipositor sheaths dark brown ( Figs 51, 52 ). Body pilosity short whitish ( Figs 52, 53 ). Eyes and ocelli brown ( Figs 52, 53 ). Mandibles light brown, teeth darker ( Fig. 53 ). Antenna ( Fig. 54 ) with scape, pedicel and anelli light brown, rest of flagellum dark brown. Wings hyaline, tegulae and venation light brown ( Fig. 55 ). Legs ( Fig. 51 ) with coxae as mesosoma; trochanters brown; femora except extremities brown with some metallic reflections; extremities yellow, the distal ones more extensively so; tibiae entirely yellow; tarsi yellow, except the last segment and claws, which are light brown; arolia dark brown.

Body length. 2.75 mm.

Head with distinct elevation between eye and posterior ocellus ( Figs 53, 56 ), reticulated except lower face, reticulation denser on vertex; lower face striated only on clypeal region ( Figs 52, 53 ). Clypeal margin slightly produced ( Fig. 53 ). Eye ovate, anterior and posterior margins not sinuous ( Fig. 51 ). Gena with a weak lamina near mouth corner. Scrobes virtually absent. Toruli with lower margins well above lower margins of eyes ( Fig. 53 ). Antenna (cf. Fig. 54 ) with scape well exceeding vertex; first anellus transverse, the second quadrate, twice as long as the first; funicular segments longer than wide. Relative measurements—head length: 26, width: 49.5, height: 44; POL: 12; OOL: 11; eye height: 21, length: 15; IOD: 37.5; eye length dorsally: 15; temple length dorsally: 3.5; malar space: 16; mouth width: 22; distance between clypeal margin and toruli: 23; scape length: 25; pedicel length: 5.5, width: 3; fu1 length: 8.5, width: 2.5.

Mesosoma dorsally coarsely reticulate ( Fig. 52 ). Notauli hardly visible except near pronotal collar ( Fig. 52 ). Scutellum moderately convex ( Fig. 51 ), frenal area not delimited, but frenal area with finer reticulation than rest of scutellum and covered with rows of longer white pilosity. Upper mesepimeron smooth ( Fig. 51 ). Metapleuron and dorsellum uniformly reticulate. Propodeum inclined (fig. 51), uniformly reticulate except two small depressions near its anterior margin submedially; spiracles oval, spiracular sulci absent (cf. Fig. 11 ). Fore wing (cf. Fig. 55 ) with basal cell and basal fold glabrous; costal cell with two irregular rows of pilosity on ventral surface; speculum extending behind marginal vein and reaching stigmal vein, but effaced by pilosity on ventral surface of wing; disc covered with sparse pilosity, area between stigmal vein and postmarginal vein mostly bare; wing pilosity including marginal fringe short; stigma clearly capitate. Relative measurements—mesosomal length: 51, width: 37, height: 37; mesoscutum length: 20; scutellum length: 18, width: 20; fore wing length: 105, width: 42; M: 22; S: 10; P: 15.

Metasoma ovate acuminate, slightly shorter than combined length of head and mesosoma ( Figs 51, 52 ), dorsally mostly reticulate-imbricate (alveolae wider than long) except for gt1 which is mainly smooth (cf. Fig. 19 ). Posterior margin of gt1 straight ( Fig. 52 ). Ovipositor sheaths short, not visible in dorsal view ( Fig. 52 ). Relative measurements—metasomal length: 75, width: 37; gt1 length: 15; gt7 length: 6, width: 11.

MALE (allotype). Differs from the female holotype mainly as follows. Body length: 2.5 mm. Metasoma brown except extensively whitish dorsally and ventrally in proximal half; base of gt1 brown. Toruli much closer to median ocellus than to clypeal margin ( Fig. 56 ). Scape exceeding level of vertex by less than half scape length; both anelli transverse; funicular segments widened both proximally and distally, mostly with two whorls of long whitish setae each, and separated from each other by long tubular connections; setae on funicular segments emerging at an almost right angle to segment ( Fig. 56 ). Metasoma oval, length about 2.2× width, shorter than head plus mesosoma and narrower than mesosoma ( Fig. 56 ).

Variation. FEMALES. Body length 2.5–3.0 mm. Metasoma sometimes equal to combined length of head and mesosoma. In the South African female, antenna is lighter, the scape being yellowish and the flagellum light brown.

Comments. This is the most unusual species of Norbanus due to the head projections and slightly produced clypeal margin, features that are present in both sexes and are unique among the presently known species of the genus. Unfortunately, both the holotype, allotype and one of the female paratypes lack the distal parts of both antennae. However, these are present in the female paratype from South Africa and are described below: antennal fu5, fu6 and clava light brown; both fu5 and fu6 longer than wide; fu6 length about 1.5× width; clava length about twice width, in lateral view gradually narrowing before spicula. This female was not designated as the holotype because the head is glued on vertex and the most distinctive character of this species is hardly visible in this specimen.

Etymology. From the Latin word draco , dragon, referring to the conspicuous head projections.

Distribution. D. R. Congo, South Africa (Map 4).

Hosts. Unknown.

MAP 4. Distribution of N. draco and N. erebus

Figures

FIGURES 51–56. Norbanus draco. 51–53, holotype ♀: 51, habitus, lateral view; 52, habitus, dorsal view; 53, head, frontal view. 54 and 55, paratype ♀, South Africa: 54, pedicel plus flagellum, lateral view; 55, fore wing, dorsal view. 56, allotype ♂, habitus, lateral view.

FIGURES 7–12. Norbanus aequus, holotype ♀: 7, habitus, lateral view; 8, habitus, dorsal view; 9, head, frontal view; 10, pedicel plus flagellum, lateral view; 11, propodeum; 12, fore wing, dorsal view.

FIGURES 19–22. Norbanus africanus. 19, paratype ♀, Malawi, metasoma, detail. 20, ♂, Malawi, habitus, lateral view. 21, ♂, D. R. Congo, head, frontal view. 22, ♂, Malawi, antenna, lateral view.