Spathius albithorax, 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 : 17-18

Spathius albithorax sp. nov.

( Fig. 2 )

Description. Female. Body length 5.0 mm; fore wing length 3.8 mm.

Head. Antennae slender, weakly setiform, 36-segmented. Scape 1.5 × as long as its maximum width. First flagellar segment 6.0 × as long as its apical width, 1.2 × as long as second segment. Head not depressed, its width (dorsal view) 1.3 × median length. Head behind eyes roundly narrowed. Transverse diameter of eye 1.7 × length of temple. Ocelli arranged in triangle with base 1.2 × its sides; POL: Od: OOL = 5: 5: 16. Vertex mostly smooth, only finely striate medio-laterally. Frons densely and transversely striate. Eye glabrous, 1.2 × as high as broad. Malar space 0.5 × eye height and equal to basal width of mandible. Temple smooth. Face finely rugose-reticulate, with finely granulation between rugosity, smooth narrowly medially; its width 1.2 × eye height and 1.4 × height of face and clypeus combined. Clypeal suture distinct. Occipital carina complete dorsally, not joined below with hypostomal carina being obliterated on short distance upper base of mandible.

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 2.3 × its height. Pronotal keel distinct, its posterior branch situated closely to posterior margin of pronotum, but not fused with it; anterior branch fine and situated submedially. Mesoscutum rather highly and roundly elevated above pronotum. Mesoscutum with sparse and semi-erect setae along notauli and laterally; densely granulate, with rather long and more or less distinct rugae near notauli and laterally; lateral lobes medially with wide granulate areas, with two convergent posteriorly carinae and narrow rugosity between them in medioposterior half. Notauli complete, wide, deep anteriorly and shallow posteriorly, coarsely crenulate. Prescutellar depression distinct, deep, with three carinae, 0.3 × as long as scutellum. Scutellum finely granulate, weakly convex, with distinct lateral carinae. Mesopleuron weakly coriaceous-granulate. Subalar depression shallow, wide, coarsely rugose-striate. Precoxal sulcus deep, sinuate, distinctly crenulate, running along entire length of lower part of mesopleuron. Propodeum with distinct tubercles, densely and coarsely rugose-reticulate, densely granulate in basal half, with areas more or less distinctly delineated by carinae; basal carina 1.5 × as long as anterior fork of areola; areola large and pentagonal; petiolate area distinctly separated from areola.

Wings. Fore wing 4.0 × as long as wide. Vein r distinctly arising behind middle of pterostigma. 3-SR: r: SR1: 2-SR = 25: 7: 42: 25. Second submarginal cell not narrowed distally, its length 3.5 × maximum width, 1.4 × length of first subdiscal cell. Vein cu-a weakly postfurcal. Vein m-cu postfurcal. Hind wing vein M+CU 0.5 × as long as vein 1-M. Vein m-cu distinctly antefurcal, weakly curved towards base of wing.

Legs. Hind coxa transversely striate and granulate dorsally, coriaceous-granulate laterally and ventrally, with basoventral tooth and corner. Hind femur almost smooth, finely striate dorsally, 3.1 × as long as wide. Hind tibia apically with two spines on outer margin. Dorsal surface of hind tibia with rather long, sparse and semi-erect setae, their length 1.9–2.2 × maximum width of tibia. Hind tarsus 0.8 × as long as hind tibia. Hind basitarsus 0.7 × as long as second-fifth segments combined. Second segment of hind tarsus 0.4 × as long as basitarsus, 0.9 × as long as fifth segment (without pretarsus).

Metasoma. Petiole (lateral view) straight ventrally and distinct arched dorsally, with spiracular tubercles in basal third; sparsely striate in basal 0.7, densely striate in apically 0.3, with granulation between striae. Length of petiole 2.3 × its apical width (dorsal view), 1.5 × length of propodeum. Second tergite without separated laterotergites. Second suture indistinct. Median length of second and third tergites combined 1.4 × basal width of second tergite, 0.7 × as long as their maximum width. Second tergite densely but finely striate, smooth laterally; third tergite densely but finely striate in basal half, smooth lateral and in apical half; fourth tergite very dense semi-circularly anastomose striate, with very dense rugulosity between striae. Fifth tergite finely and sparsely coriaceous-reticulate basally, finely semi-circularly striate apically. Remaining tergites smooth. Ovipositor sheath 1.8 × as long as petiole, 0.7 × as long as metasoma, as long as mesosoma, 0.5 × as long as fore wing.

Colour. Body pale yellow; vertex with brown patch in middle part of temples. Mesosoma dark reddish brown to almost black in lower part (lateral view). Petiole yellowish brown; second and third tergites mostly black with yellow narrow lateral (partly) and wide posterior areas, second tergite without yellow spots. Remaining tergites mainly black, but yellow laterally and narrowly apically. Antenna brownish yellow basally, yellowish brown to brown in median 0.3, five subapical segments pale yellow, last apical segment brown. Palpi pale yellow. Middle femur brown subapically; hind femur dark brown in apical half. Ovipositor sheath brown, but medially widely pale brown. Fore wing faintly infuscate, with faint maculation. Pterostigma brown, yellow in basal 0.25–0.30 and apically.

Variation. Body length 5.4 mm; fore wing length 3.9 mm. First flagellar segment 5.8 × as long as its apical width. Transverse diameter of eye 1.8 × length of temple. Mesosoma 2.2 × as long as its height. Fore wing 3.9 × as long as maximum width. Hind femur 3.2 × as long as wide. Length of petiole 2.4 × its apical width (dorsal view).

Male. Unknown.

Material examined. Holotype: female, China, Hainan Prov., Jianfengling , 6.VI.2007, Liu Jingxian, No. 200703850 ( ZJUH) . Paratype: 1 female, China, Hainan Prov., Jianfengling , 4–7. VI .2007, Zeng Jie, No. 200711138 ( ZJUH) .

Comparative diagnosis. This new species belongs to the S. moderabilis Wilkinson species group. Spathius albithorax sp. nov. is similar to S. moderabilis Wilkinson , but differs in having the second and third tergites striate (finely punctate-reticulate basally in S. moderabilis ), ovipositor sheath shorter than metasoma (distinctly longer than metasoma and as long as body in S. moderabilis ), mesoscutum roundly elevated above pronotum (perpendicularly elevated in S. moderabilis ), and pronotal keel posterior branch not fused with posterior margin of pronotum (fused in S. moderabilis ).

Etymology. From “albus” (Latin for “white”) and “thorax” (Latin for “thorax”) because its mesosoma is white.

Distribution. China (Hainan).

Figures

FIGURE 2. Spathius albithorax sp. nov. A, habitus, lateral aspect; B, head, frontal aspect; C, head, dorsal aspect; D, fore wing; E, petiole, lateral aspect; F, mesoscutum, dorsal aspect; G, mesosoma, lateral aspect; H, metasoma, dorsal aspect. Scale bar 0.5 mm.