Cheiloneurus roellus, 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 : 229-230

Cheiloneurus roellus sp.nov.

( Figs 567-571; Hab. E 87)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.2-1.3mm): body generally dark brown to black with a weak to moderate metallic sheen; scape ( Fig. 567) dark brown, apex yellow; pedicel brown, apex yellow; funicle and clava pale testaceous yellow; mesoscutum with pale, silvery setae; coxae white, mid coxa brown proximally; legs otherwise white to pale orange with brown areas; fore wing hyaline; head about 3.7X as wide as frontovertex, in facial view about as broad as broad as long, subcircular, gena weakly and evenly curved; frontovertex naked medially below anterior ocellus; area between eye and scrobe about 2X as wide as diameter of anterior ocellus, with distinct sculpture, scrobal margin rounded; interantennal prominence dorsally rounded with only a few long setae; mandible with three sharp teeth, upper tooth shortest; antenna ( Fig. 567) with scape about 4X as long as broad; funicle with all segments subquadrate, becoming larger distad; head about as wide as length of flagellum; linear sensilla on F5-F6; clava 3-segmented, about as long as F2-F6 combined, sensory area small, extending less than 0.1X along ventral margin; mesoscutum( Fig. 568) with polygonally reticulate sculpture; scutellum with a distinct apical tuft of setae; wings fully developed; fore wing ( Fig. 571) about 2.7X as long as broad; parastigma slightly swollen, not curved downwards; apex of stigmal vein with 4 campaniform sensilla; costal cell dorsally with only 1 or 2 setae at apex and a single, complete line of setae ventrally; area below proximal part of parastigma with a group of about 15 pale setae; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins not connected by a naked hyaline area ( Fig. 570); apical bristle of postmarginal vein about 0.5X as long as marginal vein; mid tibial spur slightly longer than basitarsus; propodeum with about 15 setae around each spiracle, not extending down side; gaster without “glands” on Gt1 and Gt5; syntergum about 1.2X as long as mid tibia; ovipositor about 2.7X gonostylus or 1.7X mid tibia; gonostylus about 1.8X as long as mid tibial spur; exserted part of ovipositor about 0.4X as long as mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.21mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.18mm (CPD).

Head black with weak, blue and coppery purple reflections on frontovertex; scrobal area mostly with a purple sheen merging to coppery laterally on gena; mouth margin with a slight metallic green sheen; temple metallic green; frontovertex with inconspicuous dark brown setae; antenna ( Fig. 567) with radicle dark brown; scape dark brown, apical one-third yellowish; pedicel brown, apical one-third yellow; flagellum pale testaceous-yellow; thorax mostly dark brown to black; pronotum with a slight purple sheen; mesoscutum clothed in pale, silvery setae and with a weak, blue sheen mixed purple and posterior margin dark purple; tegula dark brown; axilla with a weak dark blue and purple sheen; scutellum matt, clothed with dark brown setae, sides and apex shining green with a distinct dark blue and purple sheen; metanotum with slight purple sheen; mesopleuron in posterior half with a coppery-purple sheen, anterior half with a weak violet sheen; fore coxa white; fore femur white proximally, apical half dark brown, tibia narrowly white proximally, remainder of basal half dark brown, apex very pale orange; mid coxa brown proximally, otherwise white; mid femur white in proximal one-third, and extreme apex, otherwise dark brown, tibia narrowly white proximally, a dark brown subbasal band extending a little less than half-way, remainder very pale orange; hind coxa white; hind femur white in proximal one-third, otherwise dark brown, tibia narrowly white proximally, a dark brown subbasal band extending a little more than half-way, remainder white; pretarsus slightly dusky; fore wing completely hyaline ( Fig. 571), venation mostly pale yellow-brown, submarginal vein partially hyaline; propodeum dark purple-brown; sides metallic green with conspicuous silvery setae in spiracular area; gaster dark purple-brown, Gt1 largely dark metallic blue with some violet reflections; remainder of gaster mixed purple and brassy; gonostylus dark brown.

Head about 3.7X as wide as frontovertex, not subtriangular in profile, occipital margin sharp, occiput without a shallow, median groove; ocelli forming an angle of about 65°; frontovertex slightly shiny, with conspicuous reticulate sculpture of mesh size generally very slightly smaller than diameter of eye facet; scrobes and mouth margin with shallower sculpture; gena with elongate sculpture; temple almost smooth, with shallow irregular, reticulate sculpture, of larger mesh than frontovertex and distinctly elongate posteriorly; scrobes shallow, meeting dorsally, dorsal and lateral margins weakly rounded; antenna as in Fig. 567; scape slightly broadened and flattened, about 4X as long as broad; all funicle segments subquadrate, broader and larger distad; clava slender, about as long as F2-F6 combined, sutures not oblique, sensory area small, at apex only and giving it a rounded appearance; eye very nearly reaching occipital margin, separated by less than diameter of a facet, clothed with conspicuous setae that are each at least as long as diameter of facet; inner eye margins not converging anteriorly; malar sulcus absent; mandible with three sharp teeth, upper tooth shortest. Relative measurements: HW 48, HH 49, FV 13, OD 3.5, POL 6.5, OOL 1, OCL 5, AOL 7.5, EL 33, EW 26.5, MS 21, SL 27.5, SW 7.

Thorax ( Fig. 568) with shallow, irregular, polygonally reticulate sculpture on pronotum, generally of mesh size subequal to diameter of facet; sculpture on mesoscutum generally of similar depth to that on pronotum, but more regular and of smaller mesh; sculpture on axilla similar to that on mesoscutum, but slightly deeper; scutellum with conspicuously deeper, polygonally reticulate sculpture; apex and sides narrowly completely smooth; visible part of mesoscutum about 2X as broad as long; scutellum very slightly broader than long, with a distinct subapical tuft, setae about half as long as scutellum; hind femur about 3.5X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 570, 571; costal cell with only 1 seta dorsally at apex; no naked streak present between apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins; propodeum ( Fig. 568) with numerous setae in spiracular area, side naked, medially about 0.1X as long as scutellum and without distinct sculpture. Relative measurements: FWL 55, FWW 20.5; HWL 44, HWW 10.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about half-way to apex; syntergum slightly longer than mid tibia and with apex acute; ovipositor slightly exserted, the exserted part about 0.4X as long as mid tibial spur.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on 5-F6; gaster without “glands” on Gt1 and Gt5; ovipositor as in Fig, 569, gonostylus about 2X as long as mid tibial spur. Relative measurements: OL 45.5, GL 17 [MT 27].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.21-1.27mm, otherwise little in material examined.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, Pitilla ( ACG), 700m, MT/YPT, 24.i-27.ii.1996 (J.S. Noyes) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Guanacaste, Estac. Pitilla, 9km S Santa Cecilia , 700m, iv.1989 (I. Gauld) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratype in NHMUK .