Heredius gadelhai, Silva & Shimbori & Fernandes, 2025

Silva, Antonielson B., Shimbori, Eduardo M. & Fernandes, and Daniell R. R., 2025, A new species of Heredius (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Doryctinae) from Brazilian Amazon Rainforest, Zoologia (e 24066) 42, pp. 1-6 : 2-4

Heredius gadelhai sp. nov.

Figs 1 , 2

https://zoobank.org/ B485A265-30D0-4FE1-B1F9-E25B3709E1ED

Diagnosis. This is the smallest species of the genus at 1.5 mm (other species> 2.7 mm), with fewer antennal segments and the shorter ovipositor (both in relative and absolute terms), and may be distinguished from all other known members of the genus by the following combination of characters: body length 1.5 mm and entirely yellow, ocell-ocular distance about 3.5 times diameter of lateral ocellus; malar space 0.3 times eye height, antenna with 14 flagellomeres, first flagellomere is 0.8 times the length of the second flagellomere, precoxal sulcus smooth; ovipositor, 0.2 times the body length.

Type material. Holotype female: Brazil, Amazonas, Manaus, Reserva Ducke, 2°57’S 59°55”W, L6-3500, Malaise 2, PerÍodo 48 hours, X–2014, Azevedo, S.S. leg. ( INPA) . Holotype condition: Hind legs missing.

Description. Female. Body length 1.5 mm. ( Fig. 1 )

Head. Face, front, vertex and temple acinose ( Fig. 1C–D ); head width 1.4 times median length (dorsal view), 1.4 times width of mesoscutum. Transverse diameter of eye 3.9 times longer than temple in lateral view. Ocell-ocular distance about 3.5 times diameter of lateral ocellus. Ocelli arranged in an isosceles triangle. POL 1.0 times to OD, 0.3 times to OOL.Eye glabrous, 0.7 times wider than high. Height of malar space around 0.3 times height of eye. Hypoclypeal depression rounded, 1.9 times wider than height. Occipital carina complete, ventrally joined with hypostomal carina. Antenna with 16 antennomeres. Scape 1.6 times longer than its maximum width, first flagellar segment straight, 4.9 times longer than apical width, 0.8 times longer than second segment.

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma1.6 times its height ( Fig. 1A–B, E ). Pronotum, propleuron, and mesopleuron acinose. Mesoscutum 0.8 times longer than wide (dorsal view). Notauli scrobiculate (1F–G); precoxal sulcus smooth and nearly complete ( Fig. 1B ). Propodeum mostly rugose and acinose, areolate area slightly rugose and extending across the entire propodeum, forming a diamond shape. Wings ( Fig. 1H ): Fore wing 3.2 times longer than its maximum width. Pterostigma large, 3.6 times longer than wide. Vein r arising slightly after middle of pterostigma. Marginal cell length 3.3 times maximum width. Vein R1 1.6 times longer than pterostigma. Vein r 0.7 times as long as maximum width of pterostigma. Vein 3RSa straight in its length, 2.1 times longer than vein r, 0.8 times longer than vein 2RS. Vein 2RS 2.7 times longer than vein r, 2.6 times longer than vein m-cu. Vein m-cu in line with vein 2RS. Vein (RS+M) slightly curved. First discal cell 1.4 times longer than width. Veins 1M parallel to m-cu. Vein 1M 2.2 times longer than vein 1RS, 2.6 times longer than vein m-cu. Vein cu-a straight and short, 0.2 times the length of vein 1M. Vein M+CU straight. Hind wing 5.6 times longer than wide; vein cu-a straight. Legs: Hind legs broken/missing; fore tibia with a row of five spines arranged more or less in a line.

Metasoma. Metasoma 1.2 times longer than head and mesosoma combined. Maximum width of first tergite 1.7 times its minimum width; length 0.6 times longer than apical width, 0.6 times length of propodeum. First metasomal tergite rugulose, second metasomal tergite lacunose basally ( Fig. 1G, I ). Remaining tergites smooth with few setae. Median length of second tergite about 1.2 times its basal width, 2.1 times length of third tergite. Combined length of second and third tergites 0.9 times their maximum width. Ovipositor 0.4 times as long as metasoma, 0.6 times longer than mesosoma, 0.2 times as long as body, 0.2 times as long as fore wing.

Color. Body entirely light yellow ( Fig. 1 ), except for light brown apical flagellomeres and forewing stigma, ovipositor black at the apex, sheaths light brown; palpi, coxae, trochanter, and trochantellus yellowish white; wings hyaline.

Male. Unknown.

Distribution. Amazonas ( Brazil) ( Fig. 2 ).

Biology. Host unknown.

Etymology. The new species is named in honor of our colleague and friend Sian Gadelha, a taxonomist who specialized in braconid wasps and greatly contributed to the knowledge of the systematics of the Doryctinae .

Remarks.The new species is similar to H. flavus Castro, Nunes & Penteado-Dias, 2011 ( Castro et al. 2011), in having the body entirely yellow, small ocelli, head and mesosoma mainly acinose, notauli scrobiculate, and first tergite with basal width 0.6 times the apical width. It differs from H. flavus in having a body length of 1.5 mm (4.0 mm in H. flavus ), antenna with 14 flagellomeres (30 in H. flavus ), precoxal sulcus smooth (finely scrobiculate in H. flavus ), and ovipositor short, 0.2 times the body length (ovipositor as long as the body in H. flavus ). Despite the apparent rarity of Heredius specimens in collections, the genus is widely distributed in the Neotropical region, as each of the four described species occurs in four distinct locations (one in Costa Rica and three in Brazil) ( Fig. 2 ), in different vegetations and biomes. Therefore, its actual species richness is likely to be underestimated.

Figures

Figure 1. Heredius gadelhai sp. nov., holotype female: (A) lateral habitus; (B) body, lateral view; (C) head, dorsal view; (D) head, front view; (E) head and mesosoma, lateral; (F) mesoscutum, dorsal; (G) body, dorsal; (H) fore wings; (I) propodeum and metasoma, dorsal. Scale bars: = A, B, E, G, H, I = 0.5 mm, C, D, F = 0.1 mm.

Figure 2. Geographic distribution of species of Heredius in the world. Costa Rica and Brazilian state record is highlighted in gray. The red circle represents the specimens Heredius laselvus. Red star Heredius flavus, red triangle Heredius assu and blue square Heredius gadelhai sp. nov.