Ooderella gymnosoma, Gibson, Gary A. P., 2017

Gibson, Gary A. P., 2017, Revision of world Ooderella Ashmead (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Eupelmidae), with description of the first males for the genus, Zootaxa 4289 (1), pp. 1-74 : 62-63

Ooderella gymnosoma n. sp.

Figs 174–184

Type material. Holotype ♀ (CNC). “ IVORY COAST: Parc | National Taï , III.2014 | UTM 29N0682666 0.646862 | Malaise trap, Erina Dupont / HOLOTYPE | Ooderella | gymnosoma | Gibson” . Holotype point-mounted by mesosternum; entire; uncontorted.

Etymology. A combination of the Latin words gymnos (bare) and soma (body), in reference to the bare acropleuron, mesoscutum and fore wing discs, which are all differentiating features of females of this species.

Description. FEMALE (habitus: Fig. 177 ). Length = 3.9 mm. Head ( Figs 174–176 ) with lower face and scrobal depression mostly green with limited purple to coppery or reddish-violaceous lusters, but frontovertex mostly purple to violaceous except for limited greenish luster under some angles of light, and with angulate but not color-differentiated ocellocular mark ( Fig. 176 ); in lateral view ( Fig. 175 ) comparatively highly convex with frontal surface almost uniformly convex so broadest near middle, almost 1.4× higher than long; in frontal view ( Fig. 174 ) about 1.2× as wide as high; in dorsal view ( Fig. 176 ) almost 1.5× as wide as long with interocular distance about 0.33× head width, and with OOL: POL: LOL: MPOD = 11: 25: 15: 10. Frontovertex with vertex coriaceous-alutaceous into ocellar triangle medially, but narrowly smooth and shiny around posterior ocelli and on frons except for setiferous pits with dark setae ( Figs 174, 176 ). Scrobal depression ( Fig. 174 ) sinuately ^-shaped, the lateral margin directed dorsally from torulus so as to differentiate distinct though slender parascrobal regions, and tapered dorsally to acute angle extending to within about one ocellar diameter from anterior ocellus, and dorsally with quite deep and distinct but short sulcus about as long as ocellar diameter. Scrobal depression, parascrobal region and interantennal region coarsely reticulate-rugose, but with smooth to only very finely coriaceous scrobes extending in Π-like band dorsally around interantennal prominence ( Fig. 174 ). Interantennal prominence uniformly convex and below about level of dorsal margin of toruli with comparatively inconspicuous brownish setae as well as on lower face and parascrobal region. Mandible ( Fig. 179 ) bidentate with acute ventroapical tooth and shallowly incurved dorsoapical margin, though with dorsoapical angle of exposed left mandible differentiated into small tooth by slight notch. Labial and maxillary palps brown. Antenna ( Fig. 178 ) dark brown except scape paler, more yellowish on inner surface except basally; length of flagellum + pedicel almost 1.8× head width; scape with ventral and dorsal margins subparallel so as to be similarly broad along length; length[width] of scape: pedicel: funiculars: clava = 78[18]: 22[12]: 13[11], 40[11], 45[12], 45[14], 35[16], 26[17], 21[19], 15[20]: 46[21].

Mesosoma ( Figs 180, 181, 183 ) dark brown except mesoscutal flanges, outer inclined surfaces of lateral lobes and mesoscutum narrowly behind pronotum lighter, more brownish-yellow, and axillae similarly lighter colored, but scutellum with green to bluish-green luster, posteriorly smoother part of mesoscutum and acropleuron posterodorsally with more purple to reddish-violaceous lusters under some angles of light, and acropleuron partly with green to coppery lusters under some angles of light. Legs ( Fig. 177 ) similar in color to mesosoma except following paler, more yellowish-brown: trochanter, trochantellus and tarsus of front leg, knee, tibia apically more broadly and tarsus of middle leg, and trochantellus ventrally, knee, tibia narrowly apically, and tarsus except most of basitarsus of hind leg. Pronotum in dorsal view ( Figs 176, 180 ) with collar transverse-quadrangular, about 1.7× as wide as long, with anterolateral corners right-angled relative to anterior margin and anterior margin right-angled relative to abruptly inclined neck, the dorsal surface flat on either side of deep mediolongitudinal groove, and both collar and neck similarly inconspicuously setose. Mesoscutum ( Fig. 180 ) flat anteriorly and lateral lobes carinately angled within about posterior third; meshlike reticulate except much smoother and shinier, with subeffaced meshlike sculpture, posteriorly in region between carinately angled lateral lobes; uniformly setose with short, posteriorly directed, inconspicuous setae of similar color as cuticle except almost bare posteriorly between carinately angled lateral lobes. Scutellar-axillar complex ( Fig. 183 ) about 1.3× as long as basal width with hairlike setae of similar color as cuticle; axillae reticulate and of similar size as scutellum (almost as long as scutellum excluding frenum and anterior width similar to greatest width of scutellum); scutellum longitudinally reticulate, elongate teardrop-shaped, about 2.7× as long as greatest width, with distinctly differentiated, smooth and shiny frenal area. Tegula with uniformly distributed dark setae. Fore wing ( Fig. 183 ) extending to base of gaster, about 3.2× as long as maximum width, flat, brownish-infuscate basally and more hyaline apically, and bare except for costal cell ventrally over about basal half, dorsally setose submarginal vein, single seta on membrane dorsally behind submarginal vein basally, and single seta dorsoapically on slender vein remnant beyond submarginal vein; submarginal vein extending almost 0.6× length of wing, but with much more slender, detached vein remnant narrowly separated from angulate wing apex. Mesopleurosternum ( Fig. 181 ) with acropleuron bare but mesopectus uniformly setose with white setae except setae longer along acropleural sulcus ventrally; acropleuron anteriorly reticulate to diagonally reticulate-striate posteriorly to level near apex of tegula, but longitudinally striate-strigose along dorsal and around posterior margin, much more finely longitudinally strigose medially to narrowly smooth and shiny medially, and finely, longitudinally coriaceous-striate ventrally. Metacoxa ( Fig. 181 ) with white hairlike setae dorsally and with somewhat shorter, slender-lanceolate white setae in basally widened region ventrolaterally, but bare longitudinally over outer surface. Propodeum ( Fig. 183 ) with carinate posterior margin Π-like incurved toward only very slightly emarginate anterior margin so margins separated medially by distance somewhat greater than length of metanotum; with shallow furrow along foramen on either side of midline anterior to ^-like smooth and shiny region along foramen, and otherwise only finely coriaceous, and bare except at least for slender longitudinal band of white setae along posterolaterally (any setae anterior to spiracle concealed under wings).

Gaster ( Figs 177, 182 ) dark brown except white subbasally, dorsally and laterally on Gt1 and with Gt2 (mostly concealed under Gt1) hyaline, and syntergal flange and tips of ovipositor sheaths similarly pale, yellowish; distinctly meshlike coriaceous with pre-syntergal tergites beyond Gt2 densely setose with multiple rows of setae of similar color as tergites; syntergum ( Figs 182, 184 ) strongly transverse, much shorter than penultimate tergite, with single row of setae differentiating bare, posteriorly angulate syntergal flange from convexly inclined, bare basal region ( Fig. 184 ); ovipositor sheaths extending conspicuously beyond syntergal flange, by distance about equal to 0.6× length of metatibia.

Distribution (Map 2D). Ivory Coast.

Remarks. The holotype of O. gymnosoma is readily differentiated from females of the other Afrotropical species by its conspicuously exerted ovipositor sheaths and bare fore wings. The fore wings also differ from those of the other species in having the setose submarginal vein extending about 0.6× the length of the wing but more apically with a detached, very slender vein remnant that extends virtually to the apical margin. Additional specimens are required to determine whether there is intraspecific variation in this feature. Females of O. platyscapus have similarly long fore wings, but with the melanised venation extending virtually to the wing apex.

Figures

FIGURES 174 – 184. Ooderella gymnosoma n. sp., holotype, ♀: 174, head, frontal; 175, head, lateral; 176, head and pronotum, dorsal; 177, lateral habitus; 178, antenna; 179, mandibles; 180, pronotum and mesoscutum; 181, mesosoma, lateral; 182, gaster, dorsal; 183, scutellar-axillar complex to propodeum plus wings; 184, syntergum, posterolateral.