Spathius angustalatus, Tang & Belokobylskij & Chen, 2015

Tang, Pu, Belokobylskij, Sergey & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2015, Spathius Nees, 1818 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Doryctinae) from China with a key to species, Zootaxa 3960 (1), pp. 1-132 : 21-22

Spathius angustalatus sp. nov.

( Fig. 4 )

Description. Female. Body length 5.9 mm; fore wing length 3.8 mm.

Head. Antennae slender, filiform, 43-segmented. Scape 1.4 × as long as its maximum width. First flagellar segment 5.3 × as long as its apical width, 1.1 × as long as second segment. Head width (dorsal view) 1.4 × median length. Head behind eyes (dorsal view) roundly narrowed; transverse diameter of eye 1.7 × length of temple. Ocelli medium-sized, arranged in triangle with base 1.2 × its sides; POL: Od: OOL = 6: 5: 14. Vertex almost smooth, only finely striate anteriorly. Frons densely and transversely striate. Eye glabrous, 1.3 × as high as broad. Malar space 0.4 × eye height and 0.9 × basal width of mandible. Temple smooth. Face almost entirely transversely rugose-reticulate, clypeus rugose-striate; its width equal to eye height and 1.1 × height of face and clypeus combined. Clypeal suture distinct, but shallow, without additional carina. Clypeus flat, with narrow ventral flange. Occipital carina complete dorsally, not joined below with hypostomal carina being obliterated on short distance upper base of mandible.

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 2.4 × its height. Pronotal keel situated on middle of pronotum, its posterior branch distinctly separated from posterior margin of pronotum. Mesoscutum not highly and roundly elevated above pronotum, its median lobe protruding forwards, convex-rounded anteriorly (dorsal view), without anterolateral corners; with sparse long almost erect setae situated widely along notauli and narrowly marginally; densely granulate with additional dense long rugosity. Notauli deep anteriorly and shallow posteriorly, wide, complete, coarsely crenulate. Prescutellar depression shallow, with three carinae, finely rugulose, 0.4 × as long as scutellum. Scutellum granulate-coriaceous, weakly convex, with lateral carinae. Mesopleuron entirely coarsely and curvedly rugose-striate. Subalar depression shallow, wide, coarsely and sparsely rugose-striate. Precoxal sulcus deep and wide in anterior 0.7, shallow and narrow in posterior 0.3, weakly curved, coarsely crenulate, running along almost entire lower part of mesopleuron. Propodeum without tubercles, mostly coarsely rugulose-reticulate, its basolateral areas granulate-punctate in basal half and coarsely rugose in posterior half; basal carina long, 2.6 × as long as anterior fork of areola; areola unclear delineated by carinae.

Wings. Fore wing 4.7 × as long as wide. Vein r arising before middle of pterostigma. 3-SR: r: SR1: 2-SR = 12: 3: 20: 10. Second submarginal cell not narrowed distally, its length 3.1 × maximum width, 1.3 × length of first subdiscal cell. Vein m-cu postfurcal. Vein CU1a postfurcal. Hind wing vein M+CU 0.5 × as long as vein 1-M. Vein m-cu distinctly antefurcal, strongly oblique towards base of wing.

Legs. Hind coxa dorsally transversely and rather finely semi-circularly striate, almost entirely finely granulate in lower half, without basoventral tooth and corner. Hind femur almost smooth, elongate-oval, 3.5 × as long as wide. Hind tibia apically with four spines on outer margin. Dorsal surface of hind tibia with long, sparse and semi-erect setae, their length 0.8–1.0 × maximum width of tibia. Hind tarsus 0.8 × as long as hind tibia. Hind basitarsus 0.8 × as long as second-fifth segments combined. Second segment of hind tarsus 0.5 × as long as basitarsus, 0.9 × as long as fifth segment (without pretarsus).

Metasoma. Petiole (lateral view) almost straight, more or less evenly thick, weakly widened in apical 0.2 (dorsal view), with small spiracular tubercles in basal third; sparsely and finely striate, finely coriaceous and granulate between striae in basal third, only finely granulate-coriaceous on median third, and densely striate in apical third. Length of petiole 8.6 × its apical width (dorsal view), 3.1 × length of propodeum. Second and third tergites with separate laterotergites. Second suture absent. Median length of second and third tergites combined 2.9 × basal width of second tergite, 1.4their maximum width. Second and third tergites with very fine aciculation. Remaining tergites smooth. Ovipositor sheath 3.1 × as long as petiole, 1.5 × as long as metasoma, 3.5 × as long as mesosoma, 1.6 × as long as fore wing.

Colour. Head mostly pale yellowish brown, face pale brown, with dark area on vertex and temple. Mesosoma mostly black, mesoscutum yellowish brown, mesopleuron with a small yellow spot. Petiole black; second and third tergites mostly black, yellow apically; remaining tergites widely dark medially, yellow laterally. Antenna brownish yellow, faintly infuscate towards apex. Palpi pale yellow. Legs pale yellow; fore and middle femora faintly darkened subapically, hind femur widely black; all tibiae faintly infuscate submedially. Ovipositor sheath brown or pale brown, almost black apically. Fore wing faintly infuscate. Pterostigma brown, basally and apically yellow.

Variation. Body length 4.2–7.0 mm; fore wing length 2.7–4.5 mm. First flagellar segment 5.0–5.5 × as long as its apical width, 1.2 × as long as second segment. Transverse diameter of eye 1.8 × length of temple. Ocelli arranged in triangle with base 1.3 × its sides. Mesosoma 2.2 × as long as its height. Fore wing 4.5–4.8 × as long as maximum width. Length of second submarginal cell 3.0–3.2 × maximum width, 1.2 × length of first subdiscal cell. Body paler, mesosoma without dark areas.

Male. Body length 3.8–4.2 mm; fore wing length 2.5–2.7 mm. Hind femur 3.8 × as long as wide. Length of petiole 7.8–8.8 × its apical width (dorsal view), 3.0–3.2 × length of propodeum. Median length of second and third tergites combined 2.8–3.0 × basal width of second tergite, 1.3–1.4 × their maximum width. Otherwise similar to female.

Material examined. Holotype: female, China, Hainan Prov., Jianfengling , 6.VI.2007, Liu Jingxian, No. 200703766 ( ZJUH) . Paratypes: China: 1 female, Hainan Prov., Diaoluoshan , 29. V –2. VI.2007, Xiao Bin, No. 200804562 ( ZJUH) ; 1 female, Hainan Prov., Bawangling , 9–10. VI.2007, Liu Jingxian, No. 200703548 ( ZJUH) ; 1 female, Hainan Prov., Jianfengling Tianchi , 12–15.VII.2006, Chen Tianfei, No. 200803208 ( ZJUH) ; 1 female, Hainan Prov., Jianfengling Tianchi , 12–15.VII.2006, Liu Jingxian, No. 200803659 ( ZISP) ; 1 male, Hainan Prov., Jianfengling Tianchi , 25.XI.2008, Tan Jiangli, No. 200805087 ( ZJUH) ; 1 female, Hainan Prov., Jianfengling , 22– 23.XI.2008, Wang Manman, No. 200805934 ( ZJUH) ; 1 male, Hainan Prov., Jianfengling , 25.XI.2008, Wang Manman, No. 200806096 ( ZJUH) ; 1 male, Hainan Prov., Yinggeling , 24–25. V.2007, Liu Jingxian, No. 200702624 ( ZJUH) ; 1 female, Guangdong Prov., Shixing Chebaling , 15.VII.2003, Xu Zaifu, No. 20058750 ( ZJUH) ; 1 female, Guangdong Prov., Shixing Chebaling , 21.VIII.2003, Xu Zaifu, No. 20052432 ( ZJUH) .

Comparative diagnosis. This new species belongs to the S. imbecillus Enderlein species group. S. angustalatus sp. nov. is similar to S. festus Nixon , but differs in having the mesoscutum widely densely granulate with additional dense long rugosity (fine sculpture at most part in S. festus ), areola of propodeum unclear (distinctly delineated by carinae in S. festus ), mesopleuron entirely coarsely and curvedly rugose-striate (mostly smooth, only with faintly sculpture at discal of mesopleuron in S. festus ), vein m-cu of fore wing postfurcal (almost interstitial in S. festus ), hind coxa without basoventral tooth and corner (with basoventral tooth and corner in S. festus ), most part of mesosoma, metasoma and hind femur widely black or dark (mainly pale brown in S. festus ).

Etymology. From “angustus ” (Latin for “narrow”) and “ala” (Latin for “wing”), because its narrow wings.

Distribution. China (Hainan, Guangdong).

Figures

FIGURE 4. Spathius angustalatus sp. nov. A, habitus, lateral aspect; B, head, frontal aspect; C, head, dorsal aspect; D, fore wing; E, petiole, lateral aspect; F, mesosoma, lateral aspect; G, mesoscutum, dorsal aspect; H, metasoma, dorsal aspect. Scale bar 0.5 mm.