Austerocardiochiles simulatus Long, 2019

Long, Khuat Dang, Oanh, Nguyen Thi, Dzuong, Nguyen Van & Hoa, Dang Thi, 2019, Two new species of the genus Austerocardiochiles Dangerfield, Austin & Whitfield 1999 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Cardiochilinae) from Vietnam, Zootaxa 4657 (3), pp. 587-595 : 592-594

Austerocardiochiles simulatus Long , sp. n.

( Figs 14–25 )

Material. Holotype, female, ‘ Card.164 ’ (VNMN), NE. Vietnam: Tuyen Quang, Na Hang NP, Son Phu , forest, MT, 22°17’32’’N 105°28’19’’E, 573m, 5.vi.2017, KD Long.

Description. Holotype, female, body length 7.9 mm, fore wing length 7.8 mm, antenna 4.5 mm, ovipositor sheath 1.5 mm ( Fig. 14 ).

Head. Eyes rather densely pilose; antenna with 46 antennomeres; third antennomere 1.5 × fourth antennomere (12:8); apical antennomere 2.0× as long as subapical; ventral margin of clypeus evenly convex with two faint tubercles ( Fig. 16 ); face rugo-punctate; clypeal suture indistinct; face width 1.2 × length of face and clypeus combined (47:39); distance between tentorial pits 2.6 × distance between pit and eye margin (26:10); basal width of mandible 1.3 × distance from mandible to eye margin (13:10) ( Fig. 16 ); in dorsal view, head median length 0.5 × as long as width (42:82); eye length 1.5 × temple (25:17); POL:OD:OOL=6:5:20 ( Fig. 15 ); frons depressed laterally, with smooth median carina, transversely striate; in lateral view, transverse width of eye 0.8 × temple (15:19); vertex and temple coarsely rugose ( Fig. 17 ).

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 1.6 × height (76:47) ( Fig. 19 ); notauli evenly wide, crenulate ( Fig. 19 ); median lobe of mesoscutum with deep crenulate median depression ( Fig. 18 ); lobes of mesoscutum largely punctate anteriorly, sparsely punctate posteriorly; scutellar sulcus 0.5 × as long as scutellum (10:19), with 4 carinae ( Fig. 18 ); scutellum coarsely rugose; propodeum with areola, propodeal areola length 1.8 × as long as wide (27:15) ( Fig. 21 ); side of pronotum coarsely rugose; epicnemial absent; precoxal sulcus wide and shallow, rugose; mesopleuron smooth medially, almost punctate-reticulate dorsally and ventrally ( Fig. 19 ); metapleuron coarsely rugose.

Legs. Fore tibial spur 0.7 × as long as fore basitarsus (17:23); length of hind femur, tibia and basitarsus 2.9, 7.4 and 3.8 × their maximum width, respectively; hind coxa largely rugo-punctate; hind femur densely punctate; inner hind tibial spur 1.54 × outer tibial spur (17:11), and 0.7 × hind basitarsus (17:23); hind basitarsus 0.4 × hind tibia (23:57), and slightly longer hind tarsus 2–5 (23:22); hind tarsal claw pectinate, with 6 teeth ( Fig. 25 ).

Wings. Length of fore wing 2.7 × its maximum width (122:45); pterostigma length 3.5 × width (45:13) ( Fig. 20 ); r:3-SR:2-SR=9:35:24; vein 2-SR+M 1.4 × vein m-cu (14:10); vein m-cu 0.4 × vein 1-M (8:20); vein 1-CU1 0.4 × vein 2-CU1 (8:21) and 0.8 × vein cu-a (8:10); second submarginal cell 2.4 × as long as wide; length of hind wing 3.95 × its maximum width (91:23); vein M+CU slightly longer vein 1-M (37:35); vein 1-M 3.2 × vein 1r-m (35:11); hind wing with 6 hamuli ( Fig. 22 ); vein 2-SC+R vertical.

Metasoma. Metasoma 0.95 × as long as head and and mesosoma combined (57:60); first metasomal tergite widened apically ( Fig. 23 ), 0.95 × as long as broad (41:43), and 1.5 × as long as propodeum (41:28); first metasomal tergite smooth basally, recticulate medio-apically ( Fig. 23 ), rugo-punctate latero-apically; second tergite with basal area ( Fig. 24 ); median length of second tergite 0.26 × as long as basal width (13:50), and 0.52 × third tergite (13:25) ( Fig. 24 ); hypopygium pointed apically, largely desclerotized, folded basally; setose part of ovipositor sheath 0.7 × as long as hind tibia (23:33).

Color. Largely black; fore leg black, except fore femur yellow latero-ventrally and apically; tibia and tarsus yellow; middle and hind legs black; wing veins blackish brown; fore wing membrane dark brown in apical 0.7 and hyaline in 0.3 of the wing; membrane of hind wing hyaline, except dark apically.

Male: Unknown.

Etymology. From “simulo” (Latin for “imitate”, “copy”), because this new species is similar to A. tujiazu Chen, Whitfield & He , from China.

Biology: Unknown.

Comments. Differences between the new species and A. tujiazu are given in the key. Additionally A. simulatus , sp. n. differs from A. tujiazu by having the following characters: a) Eyes rather densely pilose ( Figs 15, 17 ); b) Median lobe of mesoscutum U-shaped, with long median crenulated depression ( Fig. 18 ); c) Vein 2-SR+M of fore wing 1.4 × as long as vein m-cu; d) First metasomal tergite punctate-reticulate medio-apically ( Fig. 23 ); and e) Setose part of ovipositor sheath 0.7 × as long as hind tibia.

Figures

FIGURE 14. Austerocardiochiles simulatus, sp. n. Habitus (holotype, female, lateral view).

FIGURES 15–25. Austerocardiochiles simulatus, sp. n. (Holotype, female) 15. Head (dorsal view), 16. Head (frontal view), 17. Head (lateral view), 18. Mesonotum, 19. Mesopleuron, 20. Apex of fore wing, 21. Propodeum, 22. Hind wing hamuli, 23. First metasomal tergite, 24. Metasomal tergites 2+3, 25. Hind tarsal claw.