Cercobelus adrastea, Noyes, 2023

Noyes, John Stuart, 2023, ENCYRTIDAE OF COSTA RICA (HYMENOPTERA: CHALCIDOIDEA), 4 Subfamily Encyrtinae: tribes Arrhenophagini, Habrolepidini, Cerapterocerini, Cheiloneurini, Trechnitini, Cercobelini, Polaszekiini, Protyndarichoidini, Gahaniellini and Syrphophagini (part), mainly primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids of Coccoidea and Psylloidea (Hemiptera), Taxonomic Monographs on Neotropical Hymenoptera (Oxford, England) 2 (11), pp. 1-921 : 613-614

Cercobelus adrastea sp.nov.

(Figs 1635-1646; Hab. E 244, G 245)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.2-1.5mm): scape dark brown; wings largely hyaline, but fore wing (Figs 1635, 1639) weakly infuscate below apex of venation; all coxae dark brown; fore femur dark brown, mid femur dark brown and white; hind tibia dark brown with a distinct white basal band; antenna (Figs 1640-1642) with scape about 4.3X as long as broad; pedicel about 2.1-2.3X as long as broad; antenna without linear sensilla on F1; all funicle segments slightly longer than broad; F1 subequal to F2 or slightly smaller; mandible (Fig. 1637) with 1 very short, acute tooth and a broad, slightly oblique, truncation with a distinctly serrate margin; fore wing (Figs 1635, 1639) with marginal vein about 2X as long as broad; hind wing about 4X as long as broad; propodeum (Fig. 1636) medially smooth, spiracle separated from anterior margin of propodeum by about 0.5X its own diameter; apex of syntergum smooth; hypopygium (Figs 1645, 1646) completely longitudinally divided, with long anterior apodemes. Male (length about 1.1- 1.2mm): fore wing mostly hyaline but infuscate below apex of venation; hind tibia brown with a well-defined white, basal band; head in facial view with inner margins of eyes weakly concave; setae on funicle (Fig. 1643) 2X as long as diameter of segments; costal cell of fore wing with a single line of setae ventrally.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.42mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.37mm (CPD).

Head black and slightly shiny, generally with a distinct coppery sheen, frontovertex with some dull, metallic, dark green reflections; antenna (Fig. 1640) with radicle dark brown; scape dark brown, extreme apex pale orange; pedicel brown with extreme apex and venter pale orange; funicle orange-brown; clava brown; maxillary palpus white; thorax black and slightly shiny; pronotum with coppery and dull, dark green reflections; mesoscutum with a moderate blue-green sheen; tegula with a coppery purple sheen; axilla and scutellum shiny with a coppery sheen, apex and side of scutellum metallic green and brassy; mesopleuron with a weak coppery purple sheen; all coxae dark brown; fore femur dark brown, tibia dark brown, pale orange at extreme apices, tarsus dark brown; mid femur with proximal 0.3X white, extreme apex white, remainder dark brown, tibia with extreme base white, apical 0.2X pale orange, remainder dark brown, spur pale yellow, tarsus pale orange, apical tarsomere brown; hind femur with extreme base white, remainder dark brown, tibia with extreme base white, remainder dark brown, tarsus dark brown; wings largely hyaline, but fore wing infuscate below marginal and stigmal veins to about half way across wing (Fig. 1635); propodeum dark brown and moderately shiny, side with a weak coppery purple and green sheen; gaster dark brown, moderately shiny with a slight coppery purple sheen with brassy, purple, blue and green reflections; gonostylus dark brown.

Head (Fig. 1637) about 1.5X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.8X as high as deep, convexly rounded from occipital margin to top of scrobes, then virtually straight mouth margin; occipital margin sharp, carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 125°; frontovertex shiny, with moderately deep, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size generally larger than eye facet; temple and gena with longitudinally elongate, polygonally reticulate to striate sculpture; eye separated from occipital margin by about 1.5X diameter of posterior ocellus, or about 2.5X diameter of facet, with inner margin not sinuate, clothed with fairly conspicuous, sparse, pale setae that are about as long as diameter of facet; scrobes shallow, ∩-shaped, quite smooth; interantennal prominence weak, dorsally rounded, with very shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture; torulus with its upper margin a little below lower eye margin; antenna as in Fig. 1640; scape hardly broadened, about 4.3X as long as broad; pedicel about 2.3X as long as broad; all funicle segments slightly longer than broad, subequal in length but becoming slightly broader distad, linear sensilla present on F2-F4; clava nearly as long as funicle; clypeal margin broadly and weakly emarginate medially, tentorial pit visible below torulus. Relative measurements: HW 60, HH 55, FV 40, POL 17, OOL 9, OCL 3.5, AOL 9, EL 30, EW 20, MS 21, SL 30, SW 7.

Thorax (Fig. 1636) in dorsal view with pronotum hardly elongate, partly visible behind head, with posterior margin clearly and evenly concave; pronotum with shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture, of smaller mesh size to that in ocellar area and clearly much shallower, side with transversely elongate reticulate sculpture of larger mesh; mesoscutum with similar sculpture to that on frontovertex in front of anterior ocellus, but a little shallower; axilla with similar sculpture to dorsal part of pronotum; scutellum with irregular, relatively coarse, polygonally reticulate sculpture that is slightly shallower than that on mesoscutum, especially at apex and side where it is virtually completely smooth and shiny; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.3X as broad as long, medially about 4X as long as pronotum; scutellum about 1.1X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and distribution of setae as in Figs 1635, 1639; propodeum (Fig. 1636) medially about 0.24X as long as scutellum, smooth and shiny. Relative measurements: FWL 77, FWW 32.5; HWL 54.5, HWW 13.5.

Gaster slightly longer than thorax, last tergite about 0.5X as long as mid tibia, with apex truncate and slightly medially invaginate; ovipositor slightly exserted, the exserted part about 0.3X as long as mid tibial spur or 0.1X mid tibia.

Paratype. Mandible with 1 very short, hardly acute tooth and a broad, slightly oblique, truncation with a distinctly serrate margin; hypopygium (Fig. 1645) completely longitudinally divided, with long anterior apodemes; ovipositor (Fig, 1638). Relative measurements: OL 39 [MT 76].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.29-1.44mm, the pedicel may be about 2.1- 2.3X as long as broad; F1 may be subequal to F2 or distinctly smaller, the funicle segments vary from all being quadrate to all being distinctly longer than broad, the longest up to 1.5X as long as broad (Figs 1640-1642), otherwise little variation noted in type series.

Male (length 1.10-1.24mm).

Generally very similar to female in all respects except for structure of antenna (Fig. 1643) and genitalia (Fig. 1644). Eye separated from occipital margin by about diameter of posterior ocellus; antenna with scape slightly broadened and flattened, only about 3X as long as broad; all funicle segments at least 2X as long as broad, clothed dorsally with long setae, each of which is at least about 2X as long as diameter of segments, clava entire; phallobase with a single apical hook on each digitus, aedeagus about 0.5X as long as mid tibia and apical very acutely pointed. Relative measurements: AL 35, MT 76.5.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Puntarenas, Est. Altamira, Cerro Quemado, LS 336200 575560, 2279m, #64572, 16.viii-16.ix.2001 ( D. Rubí ) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Heredia, 6km ENE Vara Blanca, 10°11’N 84°07’W, 2000m, 20/M/TN, ii.2002 (INBio-OET-ALAS); 1E, Heredia, 6km ENE Vara Blanca, 10°11’N 84°07’W, 2000m, 20/M/NOTN, iii.2002 (INBio-OET-ALAS); 3E, Heredia, Est. La Esperanza , 2500m, 24.iii.2002 (J. Azofeifa); 1G , Cartago, PN Tapanti, 1200-1500m, 9°45’N 83°47’W, 20.iii-10.iv.2000 (C. Hansson, D. Rubí ); 3E, Cartago, Genesis II, 4km NE Cañon , 2350m, ii.1995, iii.1995 and v.1995 (P. Hanson); 4E, 1G , Puntarenas, same data as holotype but various dates 17.v.2001 - 13.i.2002; 1E , Limón, Bratsi , Cerro Nai, LS 352300 564950, 3129m, #59118, 20.vii-20.viii.2000 (M. Alfaro) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in MZUCR and NHMUK .

COMMENTS. Cercobelus adrastea is very similar to isara but can be reliably separated using the characters in the key.