Cheiloneurus zeno, 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 : 391-393

Cheiloneurus zeno sp.nov.

(Figs 998-1000; Hab. E 147)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.0- 1.3mm): body mostly orange-brown to dark brown, scutellum orange, with a very weak to moderate metallic sheen, darker areas with a stronger metallic sheen; antenna (Fig. 999) with scape pale orange; pedicel orange-brown; flagellum dark brown; mesoscutum clothed in moderately dense silvery setae; coxae orange; legs otherwise orange with hind femur and tibia mostly dark brown; remnants of fore wing (Fig. 998) mostly infuscate with basal half mostly hyaline, apical half infuscate, apex paler; head (Fig. 1000) about 3.0-3.7X as wide as frontovertex, in facial view clearly longer than broad, genae converging, straight but curved inwards near mouth; frontovertex with about ten inconspicuous setae medially between anterior ocellus and scrobes; eye separated from scrobe by about 1.4X diameter of anterior ocellus, area between eye and scrobe with distinct sculpture; scrobes moderately deep, not sharply margined; interantennal prominence with about 20 inconspicuous setae and dorsally rounded; mandible tridentate; antenna (Fig. 999) with scape about 6.4X as long as broad; funicle with F1- F5 clearly longer than broad, F6 quadrate; linear sensilla on F3-F6, sometimes absent from F3; clava 3-segmented, very slightly longer than F4-F6 combined; sensory area slightly enlarged, extending ventrally only about 0.2X length of clava, apex with a weak oblique truncation; head width very slightly greater than funicle length; mesoscutum with fairly uniform, polygonally reticulate sculpture; scutellum with a weak, apical tuft of setae; wings shortened, not reaching apex of gaster or even cercal plate; fore wing (Fig. 998) about 3.3-3.9X as long as broad, longer wings relatively narrower; parastigma strongly downcurved; costal cell dorsally naked, ventrally with an almost complete line of setae; area below proximal part of parastigma with a group of about eight or nine setae; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins more or less connected by a naked area (Fig. 998); mid tibial spur about as long as basitarsus; propodeum with about six inconspicuous setae adjacent to spiracle, side naked; syntergum about 0.98X as long as mid tibia with apex narrowly rounded; ovipositor about 4.0X gonostylus or about 1.6X as long as mid tibia; gonostylus about 1.2X as long as mid tibial spur; exserted part of ovipositor about 0.6X as long as mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.16mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.10mm (CPD).

Head generally orange; occiput brownish around foramen, temple and posterior part of gena slightly dusky; frontovertex and scrobal area with a weak brassy and purple sheen, area below eye with a stronger coppery and brassy sheen, temple metallic green and coppery, gena mostly coppery; frontovertex with inconspicuous pale brown setae along inner eye margins; a line of similar setae below eye and a few on interantennal prominence; maxillary palpus dark brown; antenna (Fig. 999) with radicle orange, scape pale orange, pedicel orange-brown dorsally and laterally, orange ventrally; flagellum dark brown; pronotum slightly dusky orange with purple reflections; prosternum orange-brown; mesoscutum brown with a brassy and faintly green sheen, clothed in moderately dense silvery setae, except narrow anterior area; tegula orange, apex dusky orange; axilla orange with a few brassy reflections; scutellum orange between axillae and in posterior 0.4X, otherwise pale orange, a few brown setae subapically and subapical tuft black; metanotum orange-brown; mesopleuron dark orange-brown with a weak brassy lustre with some coppery reflections anteriorly; fore coxa pale orange, fore legs otherwise slightly darker pale orange; mid coxa orange, mid leg otherwise pale orange; hind coxa pale orange; hind femur orange, dorsally orange-brown to dark brown, tibia white in proximal 0.3X, otherwise dark brown, extreme apex pale orange, tarsus very pale orange, almost white; fore wing (Fig. 998) mostly infuscate but hyaline towards base, submarginal vein pale orange, rest of venation brown; propodeum brown with a weak purple sheen medially, metallic green laterally and on side, 3 or 4 conspicuous silvery setae outside spiracle; gaster brown, with a moderate brassy and purple sheen with some blue and green reflections, Gt1 darker with a stronger dark blue, green, coppery and brassy sheen; gonostylus pale orange.

Head (Fig. 1000) about 3.7X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.8X as high as deep, anteriorly more or less straight from top of scrobes to mouth margin, with interantennal prominence hardly protuberant; occipital margin sharp, not carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 60°; frontovertex quite shiny, with conspicuous, coarse, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size subequal to diameter of facet; narrowest point between eye and scrobe about 1.4X diameter of anterior ocellus and with similar, slightly coarser, more elongate sculpture; temple with shallow, irregular, elongate, sculpture; gena with slightly deeper more regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture; scrobes moderately deep, ∩-shaped, meeting, not sharply margined; interantennal prominence dorsally rounded and with relatively shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture; antenna as in Fig. 999; scape subcylindrical, about 6.4X as long as broad; flagellum slightly flattened from side to side, F1-F5 clearly longer than broad, F6 quadrate, segments larger and broader distad; clava hardly broadened, very slightly longer than F4-F6 combined, sutures oblique, sensory area enlarged, extending ventrally about 0.2X length of clava giving apex a weakly obliquely truncate appearance; eye not reaching occipital margin, separated by about 1.5X diameter of facet, appearing naked, but clothed in sparse, very inconspicuous, short setae, each much shorter than diameter of facet; inner eye margins clearly diverging in front of anterior ocellus; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin weakly concave medially; mandible with three acute teeth; apical segment of maxillary palpus not enlarged, about as long as radicle. Relative measurements: HW 53, HH 58, FV 14.5, POL 5, OOL 2.5, OCL 7, AOL 7.5, EL 39, EW 26, MS 20, SL 35, SW 5.5.

Thorax with pronotum short, hardly exposed behind head, about 0.8X as long as mesoscutum, pronotum with polygonally reticulate sculpture that is of similar depth to that on frontovertex; mesoscutum with sculpture similar to frontovertex; axilla with slightly deeper, more transversely elongate sculpture than mesoscutum, scutellum with conspicuously deeper longitudinally elongate, striate reticulate sculpture; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.6X as broad as long; scutellum about as long as broad, with a weak subapical tuft, setae about one-quarter as long as scutellum; mid tibia without an external carina; hind femur about 5.2X as long as broad; fore wing slightly reduced, not quite reaching apex of gaster, venation and setation as in Fig. 998; a weak hyaline streak at apex of venation; propodeum medially about 0.29X as long as scutellum and virtually smooth. Relative measurements: FWL 91, FWW 25; HWL 85, HWW 16.5.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about 0.3X to apex; syntergum about 0.9X as long as mid tibia, with apex narrowly rounded; ovipositor slightly exserted, the exserted part about 0.6X length of mid tibial spur or about 0.2X mid tibia.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on F3-F6 or F4-F6; gaster without “gland-like” structures on Gt1 or Gt5. Relative measurements: OL 51.5, GL 13 [MT 32].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.03-1.31mm, the mid coxa may be very pale orange and concolourous with the fore and hind coxae, the head may be only about 3X as wide as the frontovertex and the wings may be relatively shorter with the fore wing about 3.3X as long as broad and hardly reaching the cercal plate.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, Valle Miravalle , Est. Cabro Muco, LN 299769 411243, 1100m, #74102, 4.vii.2003 (J.D. Gutierrez et al.) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 2E, Guanacaste, same data as holotype . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in NHMUK .

COMMENTS. Although Cheiloneurus zeno is known only from brachypterous females, it is similar in habitus and general colouration to cupreicollis . Other than using the characters given in the key, zeno can be separated from cupreicollis by having the funicle segments relatively short with F1 less than 2X as long as broad, the apex of the syntergum narrowly rounded, almost angular and the ovipositor a little more than 1.5X as long as the mid tibia whereas in cupreicollis the funicle segments are relatively elongate with F1 at least about 3X as long as broad, the apex of the syntergum broadly rounded, almost truncate and the ovipositor is only about as long as the mid tibia. In addition, the subapical tuft on the scutellum is sparser than in cupreicollis and shorter, being at most about 0.4X as long as the scutellum, whereas in cupreicollis it is at least about half as long.