Fidiobia filicornis, Buhl, 2014

Buhl, Peter Neerup, 2014, New species and new records of Platygastrinae and Sceliotrachelinae from Togo (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae), African Invertebrates 55 (1), pp. 68-68 : 74-75

Fidiobia filicornis sp. n.

Figs 11, 12

Etymology: From Latin filum (thread); in reference to the rather unusual (for the genus) non-clavate male antennae.

Diagnosis: Antennae of male filiform, 10­segmented; mesoscutum weakly sculptured, without notauli.

Description:

Male.

Body length 0.65 mm. Black, metasoma with brownish tint; A1–A2 and legs including coxae light brownish yellow; A3–A10, mandibles and tegulae dark brown. Head from above ( Fig. 11 ) 2.0× as wide as long, hardly wider than mesosoma; occiput distinctly reticulate-coriaceous (hardly transversely so), slightly angled but without a carina; vertex finely transversely reticulate­striate posteriorly, rest faintly reticulate; frons with rather large, hardly transverse, weak meshes. OOL equal to shorter diameter of lateral ocellus; LOL= 2.5 OOL. Head in frontal view 1.15× as wide as high.Antenna ( Fig. 12 ) 10-segmented, with A1 two-thirds as long as height of head, as long as distance between inner orbits, A1 with only a narrow lamella at apex; A9 1.2× as wide as long; flagellar pubescence short. Mesosoma 1.25× as long as wide, 1.25× as wide as high. Sides of pronotum moderately strongly reticulate-coriaceous (not longitudinally so), smooth along hind margin. Mesoscutum with a few scattered setae, weakly reticulate-coriaceous in about anterior half and along sides, rest smooth; notauli absent. Mesopleuron in upper half with a few longitudinal carinae, rest smooth. Scutellum with only about 10 scattered setae, twice as wide as long, half as long as mesoscutum. Metapleuron smooth anteromedially, in lower 0.4 and along upper margin with whitish pilosity, also having a low whitish foamy rim along upper margin. Propodeal carinae low, whitish, parallel; area between them smooth, 1.5× as wide as long. Fore wing 0.95× as long as entire body, 2.6× as long as wide, faintly infuscated, with fine and dense microtrichia; submarginal vein light brown, one-third as long as wing; marginal cilia 0.07× width of wing. Hind wing 5.7× as long as wide; marginal cilia almost 0.4× width of wing. Metasoma 0.9× as long as head and mesosoma combined, 0.8× as wide as mesosoma. T1 smooth. T2 1.15× as wide as long, with two transverse and sculptured basal foveae in anterior 0.2, otherwise smooth. T3–T7 with at most weak traces of microsculpture. Apical tergites with fine setae inserted in shallow punctures: four on each of T3–T5, six on T6.

Comparison: A distinct Afrotropical species of the genus on account of conformation of antennae and mesoscutum.

Holotype: ♂ TOGO: Région des Plateaux, Cascade d’Ayomé NE of Amlamé (07°30'08"N 00°57'20"E), 13.iv.2008, 305– 330 m, at shady creek bank in rock gorge, much Anubias gigantea , swept, M. von Tschirnhaus.

Figures

Figs 11–14. Fidiobia spp.: F.filicornis sp.n., male, (11) head in dorsal view, (12) antenna; F.semirufa sp. n., male, (13) head in dorsal view, (14) antenna.