Homalopoda aibeus, 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 : 63-65

Homalopoda aibeus sp.nov.

( Figs 100-106; Hab. E 17)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.0- 1.3mm): antenna ( Fig. 101) with scape dark brown, funicle brown, mixed dusky pale orange; clava brown, mixed orange; fore femur and tibia mostly dark brown, apex of tibia pale orange; mid femur proximally dusky white, apex dark brown, tibia dark brown, apex white; fore wing ( Fig. 103) apex generally weakly infuscate; paired hyaline spots at apex of venation separated by about length of marginal vein; no hyaline spot present in middle of wing below marginal vein; head about 3.5X as wide as frontovertex; occipital margin with a scale-like seta behind posterior ocellus; mandible ( Fig. 100) with 3 acute teeth; no line of conspicuous silvery setae adjacent to eye above scrobe; scape about 2.8X as long as broad; funicle segments ( Fig. 101), F1-F3 transverse, F4 subquadrate, linear sensilla present only on F4; pedicel and flagellum combined shorter than head width; apex of scutellum ( Fig. 104) with two pairs of scale-like setae; costal cell of fore wing ventrally with 2 or 3 lines of setae proximally, a single line of setae in distal half; postmarginal vein much shorter than stigmal vein ( Fig. 102); linea calva constricted or interrupted by single seta; hind tibia without a subbasal constriction. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.08mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.02mm (CPD).

Head dark brown to black with a distinct metallic lustre; occiput metallic dark green and blue-green, foramen connected to occipital margin by a coppery line; frontovertex mostly metallic dark blue and dark green, area behind posterior ocelli with ridges of reticulate sculpture coppery-purple; a violet band above scrobes, below this narrowly metallic dark blue; top of scrobes copper, scrobes otherwise blue-green and green mixed with some coppery purple reflections; temple mainly metallic purple, mixed dark blue and green; gena dorsally quite shiny metallic green, below this relatively dull coppery purple; mouth margin coppery-purple; frontovertex with a few, fairly inconspicuous, scattered, brown setae; no line of conspicuous, silvery setae across frontovertex and below eye; gena and mouth margin with scattered, inconspicuous, translucent, white setae; interantennal prominence dorsally with a pair of submedian lines of similar setae to those on gena; maxillary palpus white; radicle pale orange, with a dark brown apical ring; scape and pedicel dark brown; funicle with F1-F3 brown and F4 slightly dusky pale orange; clava pale orange with basal segment proximally brown and terminal segment slightly dusky; thorax dark brown to black with a metallic lustre; pronotum mainly with a violet sheen, mixed dark blue medially; mesoscutum mostly metallic dark green and blue-green, laterally mixed dark blue and violet, posterior margin narrowly coppery purple; tegula dark brown with a weak coppery purple sheen; axilla with a weak coppery purple and brassy sheen; scutellum dorsally quite dull with a weak coppery purple sheen, side and apex more strongly shining coppery purple; mesopleuron with a moderate coppery purple and dark blue sheen; coxae dark brown; fore femur dark brown, distal apex dusky pale orange, tibia dark brown, extreme base dusky pale orange, apical 0.3X pale orange, tarsus dusky pale orange; mid femur with proximal 0.4X dusky white, apex dark brown, extreme apex dorsally dusky white, tibia dark brown, apical 0.4X white, spur white, tarsus white to very pale yellow, apical tarsomere pale orange; hind femur dark brown, tibia dark brown with extreme apex white, tarsus white, apical tarsomere dusky pale orange; fore wing with a pattern of hyaline and infuscate areas as in Fig. 103; propodeum dark purple-brown with a weak brassy sheen, side with a metallic dark green and coppery sheen; gaster dark purple-brown, dorsally with a coppery purple sheen, Gt1 with a coppery purple sheen, side and venter of gaster with coppery, blue, brassy and green reflections; gonostylus dark brown, extreme apex pale orange.

Head ( Fig.100) about 3.5X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.6X as high as deep, tangent to frontovertex forming an angle of about 60° with that of face; occipital margin inconspicuously emarginate medially, with a shallow vertical groove running from occipital margin to foramen, a conspicuous, elongate, scale-like seta on occipital margin behind each posterior ocellus, seta about 0.8X as long as minimum width of frontovertex; a fairly conspicuous, elongate depression adjacent to eye near occipital margin; ocelli forming an angle of about 80°; frontovertex narrowing a little anteriorly; ocellar area with relatively deep, fine, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size slightly less than diameter of eye facet, area between anterior ocellus and top of scrobes with shallower, transversely slightly elongate, polygonally reticulate to imbricate-reticulate sculpture; temple with area adjacent to eye completely smooth and shiny otherwise temple and gena with longitudinally elongate, fine polygonally reticulate sculpture of similar depth to that immediately above scrobes; top of scrobes with shallow, regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture, scrobes otherwise more or less completely smooth and shiny; interantennal prominence and mouth margin with shallow, relatively fine, polygonally reticulate sculpture; antenna as in Fig. 101; scape slightly broadened and flattened, broadest in middle, about 2.8X as long as broad; funicle segments subcylindrical ( Fig. 101), F1-F3 clearly transverse, F4 subquadrate, segments clearly broader distad; clava very nearly as long as pedicel and funicle combined, sutures parallel, sensory area small, at apex only giving it a rounded appearance; eye more or less reaching occipital margin, virtually naked, but with sparse, very short setae, each much shorter than diameter of facet; no shallow groove below eye; clypeal margin medially virtually straight. Relative measurements: HW 57, HH 45, FV 16.5, POL 10, OOL 1.5, OCL (line between posterior ocellus and scale-like seta on occipital margin) 8.5, AOL 7.5, EL 26, EW 29, MS 24, SL 21, SW 7.5.

Thorax (as in Fig. 104) with visible part of mesoscutum about 1.6X as broad as long; scutellum about 1.5X as broad as long, apex with 2 pairs of broad, scale-like setae, inner pair relatively broad, each very slightly longer than scutellum, outer pair more slender and about 0.8X as long as scutellum; hind femur about 3.6X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 102,103; costal cell with 3 setae dorsally at apex; propodeum medially about 0.08X as long as scutellum. Relative measurements: FWL 53.5, FWW 21.5; HWL 38.5, HWW 9.5.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about 0.5X towards apex; syntergum about 0.75X as long as mid tibia, with apex truncate; ovipositor slightly exserted, the exserted part about 0.5X length of mid tibial spur or about 0.2X mid tibia.

Paratype. Mandible with three acute teeth, lowermost tooth longest; funicle with linear sensilla present only on F4; linea calva interrupted by a single seta or entire; second valvifer without any subapical setae; hypopygium as in Fig. 106; ovipositor as in Fig, 105. Relative measurements: OL 78, GL 16.5 [MT 63].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.04-1.27mm, otherwise very little variation noted in material available.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Limón, RB Hitoy-Cerere, Valle de Estrella , Send. Bobócara, LN 641800 184250, 300m, #58070, 14-30.vii.2000 (F. Umaña) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Heredia, 9km NE Vara Blanca, 10°14’N 84°06’W, 1450-1550m, 15/M/NOTN, ii-iv.2005 ( INBio / OET – ALAS); 1E, Heredia, Santo Domingo , INBio Parque, 1100m, LN 526250 217400, iii.2002 (J.A. Azofeifa, J.S. Noyes); 1E , Puntarenas, MonteVerde Res., 1.vi.1993 (Michalski) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in NHMUK .

COMMENTS. This species is possibly misplaced in Homalopoda . It appears to have characters in common with Plagiomerus (short funicle segments) and Homalopoda (infuscate pattern on fore wing; postmarginal vein clearly shorter than stigmal vein). On the balance of characters, the species is placed tentatively in Homalopoda , although the uniquely tridentate mandibles suggest that this placement may be incorrect.