Sycophila (Sycophila) fusca Lotfalizadeh, 2024

Lotfalizadeh, Hossein, Delvare, Gérard, Cruaud, Astrid & Rasplus, Jean-Yves, 2024, Morphological phylogeny and revision of Sycophila and Ficomila (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea, Eurytomidae) associated with Afrotropical fig trees (Moraceae, Ficus), Zootaxa 5401 (1), pp. 1-190 : 96-98

Sycophila (Sycophila) fusca Lotfalizadeh & Rasplus sp. n.

( Figs 64–65 )

Type material examined. Holotype ♀: United Republic of Tanzania, Marangu, -3.280994° 37.520889°, ex syconia of Ficus lutea , 3.iv.1996, Rasplus J.-Y. & Kerdelhué C. leg. Deposited in CBGP. Paratypes: same data as holotype, 3♀; Mazumbai, ex syconia of Ficus chirindensis , 16.iii.1996, Rasplus J.-Y. leg., 7♀; Mialo , 20-21.ii.1995, ex syconia of F. natalensis , Rasplus J.-Y. & Kerdelhué C. leg., 3♀.

Etymology. The specific name refers to the pale colouration of the body.

Diagnosis. Flagellum with fu1 distinctly longer than pedicel, clava long (more than 3× as long as wide) ( Fig. 64B ). POL more than 2× OOL ( Fig. 64D ). Costal cell densely setose ventrally ( Fig. 65E ). Basal carina of propodeum as an inverted V, truncate mesally, with a round sooth area basomedially, surrounded by small areolae, posteriorly irregularly sculptured ( Fig. 65B ). Petiole short (at most as long as wide), with ventral transverse carina between petiole and St1 ( Figs 65C, D ).

Description of holotype ♀ ( Figs 64–65 ). Length 3.75 mm. Body brownish ( Fig. 64A ), with head dorsally, scrobe, scape distally, pedicel and flagellum, mesosoma along notauli and axillae, pronotum anterolaterally, propodeum and gaster basally brown darker; fore wing with dark brown spot below mv not reaching base of mv; lower margin of mv obscured by dark brown spot ( Fig. 64E ); gaster bicoloured ( Fig. 65C ); body setation whitish, setation of fore wing entirely dark.

Head 1.33× as broad as high [HW 178 & HH 134] ( Fig. 64C ); in dorsal view transverse, 2.0× as broad as long [HW 240 & HL 122] ( Fig. 64D ); face and vertex mostly coriaceous; malar space 0.49× as long as eye [ms 42 & EH 85]; malar sulcus distinct, sinuous ( Fig. 64E ); genal margin regularly curved, edged but not carinate; antennal toruli widely separated; interantennal space not raised, carinate laterally; scrobal depression smooth, reaching the median ocellus, not carinate on margin; POL 2.7× as long as OOL [POL 54 & OOL 20] ( Fig. 64D ); temple rounded, 0.27× the eye length (in dorsal view) [TL 25 & EL 94]; setation oriented downwards on face, outwards on the punctuate frons.

Antenna. Scape reaching above the lower margin of median ocellus, 5.26× as long as broad [SL 100 & SW 19]; fu1 2.14× as long as broad [fu1L 45 & fu1W 21], distinctly longer than pedicel, not bulging dorsally; funicular (fu2– fu4) with two rows of mps and 2–3 whorls of adpressed setae; fu2–fu5 distinctly longer than broad ( Fig. 64B ).

Mesosoma weakly arched dorsally, 1.6× as long as wide (160:100) ( Fig. 65A ), with deep sculpture; pronotum with coarse umbilicate punctures; mesepisternum raised medially, with piliferous sculpture on epicnemium; mesepisternum flattened, without ring-like process or raised umbilicate sculpture; mesoscutum with dense umbilicate punctures, transversely strigose anteriorly; notauli conspicuous, slightly obliterated by mesoscutum sculpture; prepectus bare, slightly sculptured; mesoscutum 0.6× as long as wide (60:100), 0.75× longer than length of pronotal collar (60:85), with dense umbilicate punctures laterally and on mesoscutellar disc; mesepimeron transversally strigose; metepimeron subtriangular and areolate with long white hairs; propodeum ( Fig. 65B ) with deep median depression, with a smooth median band, without any median carina; lateral rows of areolae short (extending at most to half-length of propodeum); basal carina inverted V, truncate mesally, lateral branches slightly convex; distance between lateral carinae less than 0.5× width of nucha.

Fore wing with long marginal fringe, distal margin round; dark brown spot below mv; basal cell bare or nearly so; mv distinctly enlarged, normally broadened, in lower margin concave, longer than pmv; Stv not curved; pmv distinct, not longer than stv; ventral side of costal cell densely setose, dorsally bare; speculum present; parastigmal bristles absent ( Figs 65E, F ).

Legs. Fore coxa without depression on frontal surface, hind coxa bare basodorsally; fore (32:10) and hind femora (40:14); hind tibia dorsally with more than 10 setae, setae shorter than tibia width.

Metasoma. Petiole shorter than broad dorsally, ventral transverse carina between petiole and St1 present. Metasoma 1.7× as long as wide (165:95) ( Fig. 65C ), longer than mesosoma, strongly compressed laterally and dorsally angulate ( Fig. 65D ); ventral transverse carina between petiole and St1 present; petiole in dorsal view not longer than wide, shorter than half-length of hind coxa; tergites finely sculptured; Gt4 (in lateral view) slightly as long as Gt3, sinuous posteriorly; Gt5 not covered Gt6, sinuous posteriorly; Gt4–Gt5 with a row of setae with few setae dorsally, Gt6 sparsely setose ventrally; ovipositor oriented dorsad but not distinctly upturned ( Fig. 65C ).

Male. Unknown.

Variation. Length 2.45–4.00 mm. In some specimens body entirely yellowish-brown or gaster yellowish with dark brown bands.

Host plants. Ficus chirindensis , F. lutea and F. natalensis .

Geographical distribution. United Republic of Tanzania.

Figures

FIGURE 64. S. (Sycophila) fusca sp. n. (♀). A, female in lateral view. B, antenna. C, head in frontal view. D, head in dorsal view. E, head in lateral view. F, mesosoma in lateral view.

FIGURE 65. S. (Sycophila) fusca sp. n. (♀). A, mesosoma in dorsal view. B, propodeum. C, metasoma in lateral view. D, metasoma in dorsal view. E, fore wing. F, fore wing venation.