Neralsia haddocki van Noort, Buffington & Forshage

van Noort, Simon, Buffington, Matthew L. & Forshage, Mattias, 2014, Review of Afrotropical Figitinae (Figitidae, Cynipoidea, Hymenoptera) with the first records of Neralsia and Lonchidia for the region, ZooKeys 453, pp. 37-69 : 47-50

Taxon classification Animalia Hymenoptera Figitidae

Neralsia haddocki van Noort, Buffington & Forshage sp. n. Figures 4, 5, 6

Type material.

HOLOTYPE. Female: CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC, Prefecture Sangha-Mbaéré, Réserve Spéciale de Forêt Dense de Dzanga-Sangha, 12.7km 326° NW Bayanga, 3°00.27'N, 16°11.55'E, 420m, 16-17.v.2001, S. van Noort, Malaise trap, CAR01-M145, Lowland Rainforest; SAM-HYM-P025026 (SAMC). Paratype. 1M: SOUTH AFRICA, [Eastern Cape Province], Port St John, Pondoland, 16-28.iv.1924, R.E. Turner, Brit. Mus. 1924-235 (BMNH).

Distribution.

Central African Republic, South Africa.

Etymology.

The specific epithet haddocki is in the genitive case and is for Captain Haddock, the comic book character by Hergé. The derivation has specific reference to Captain Haddock’s consistent state of inebriation and utterance of the phrases "ten thousand thundering typhoons" and "billions of bilious blue blistering barnacles", expletives commiserate with the discovery and generic determination of this novel Afrotropical record in the CAR ethanol samples.

Diagnosis.

Neralsia haddocki can be separated from all other described world Neralsia species by the closed marginal cell. A defined true vein is present along the wing margin completely closing the marginal cell. A number of the Central American and West Indies species have a darkening on the wing margin, but this is not considered to be a true vein ( Jiménez et al. 2008b). The carina present between the scutellar fovea is at the same height as the outer foveal edge.

Description.

FEMALE. Length 3.2 mm. Head, mesosoma, coxae, antennal scapes, and metasoma T1 black; rest of metasoma dark brown to reddish-brown; antennae gradually lightening from the dark-brown pedicel to the light reddish-brown F8-F11; legs reddish-brown. Wings transparent, without any infuscation.

Head. Head subquadrate, slightly wider 1.05 × than long excluding mandibles. Entire head, including eyes and mandibles, with scattered strong white pubescence. Eyes slightly bulging, projecting beyond outer margin of gena in frontal view. Antenna 13 segmented; F1 marginally longer (1.07 ×) than F2; flagellum widening toward apex. Vertex polished, setose; ocellar fig slightly raised, polished, setose; lateral ocellus diameter 0.93 × the distance between lateral and median ocellus (COC); POC:OOC:COC = 30:20:15. Upper face with reticulate carina radiating away from outer edges of toruli towards ocelli; antennal scrobes not delimited, but inner scrobal area with parallel finer carina arcing dorsally between toruli; semi-circular polished area anterior to medial ocellus. Occiput weakly concave in dorsal view, rugulose, with some parallel carina, medially polished. Lower face rugulose, with carinae directed towards middle of face; face humped between toruli and clypeal margin, protruding in lateral view; toruli projected on shelf. Upper clypeal margin defined by two pronounced lateral excavations, each encompassing an anterior tentorial pit. Clypeus with strong medial convexity, concave ventrally with strong, pubescence; clypeal margin evenly convex. Gena finely punctate proximal to eye, rugose towards mandible and strong genal carina.

Mesosoma. With scattered strong golden pubescence dorsally, laterally glabrous. Anterior fig of pronotum smooth dorso-medially with vertical parallel carina ventrally and laterally; fig dorsally and laterally defined by strong pronotal carina, which is medially indented. Lateral surface of pronotum horizontally striate, striations radiating away from submedial pronotal depression, containing dense, white fluff; pronotum ventrally with patch of dense white setae. Mesoscutum polished. Notauli almost complete, terminating just before anterior margin of mesocutum; smooth; posteriorly broadening; median mesoscutal impression present as small insignificant depression; parascutal impressions weakly defined, smooth. Mesoscutum convex, scutellum flat. Scutellar fovea not subdivided by longitudinal carinae. Foveal carina at height of outer foveal edge. Scutellum laterally areolate-rugose, medially polished with reticulate carinae. Scutellar spine short, 0.3 × scutellar length (excluding spine). Mesopleural triangle defined with weak ventral carina, horizontally striate with very fine pubescence; mesopleuron horizontally striate, striations denser dorsally than ventrally; mesopleural carina present, defined dorsally by parallel impression. Mesopleural pit present. Metepisternum antero-ventrally excavated with pubescence, medially rugulose. Metepimeron depressed with pubescence. Lateral propodeal carina very prominent, thick and strongly raised, dorsal margin convex in lateral view. Median and lateral propodeal areas rugulose. Lateral propodeal area with strong pubescence. Calyptra prominent, strongly raised. Rs+M and areolet of forewing weakly defined. Basalis vein present. M+Cu1 weakly defined. Marginal cell 1.8 × as long as wide, closed along wing margin. Margin with fringe of setae. Coxae sculpture, rest of legs polished, pubescent. Mesotibial spurs subequal in length; metatibial outer spur shorter than inner spur. Ratio of first metatibial segment to the remaining 4 segments: 0.88 ×.

Metasoma. Tergite 3 strongly striate; tergite 4 anteriorly striate grading into punctate laterally and posteriorly; dorso-medially polished; remaining tergites finely punctate. Abdominal petiole (T2) strong, longitudinally striate, 2.2 × as wide as long in dorsal view. T4 the largest tergite. Relative dorsal length of T3-T8: 60:100:8:8:15:40. Ovipositor valves not extending beyond apex of metasoma, enclosed within hypopygium. Ovipositor clip present, elongate with well-developed ventral lobe. Hypopygium with fringe of long setae running down each side; not extending beyond T8.

MALE. Length 2 mm. Head, mesosoma, coxae, antennal scapes, and posterior two-thirds of metasoma T1 black; rest of metasoma and coxae dark reddish-brown; antennae light reddish-brown; rest of legs pale yellowish-brown except for hind femur, which is reddish-brown for proximal two-thirds. Wings transparent, without any infuscation.

Head. Head more transversely globose than in female, 1.2 × wider than long excluding mandibles. Entire head, including eyes and mandibles, with scattered strong white pubescence. Eyes strongly bulging, projecting well beyond outer margin of gena in frontal view. Antenna 14 segmented; F1 same length as F2; flagellar segments gradually shortening towards apex; except for long ultimate segment (1.15 × length of F1). Vertex granulate, setose; ocellar fig slightly raised, polished, setose; lateral ocellus diameter 1.2 × the distance between lateral and median ocellus (COC). Upper face with reticulate carina radiating away from outer edges of toruli towards ocelli. Occiput weakly concave in dorsal view, with parallel semi-reticulate carina. Face and clypeus as in female.

Mesosoma. With scattered strong white pubescence dorsally, laterally glabrous, otherwise mesosoma as in female. Forewing more setose than in female.

Metasoma. Tergite 3 polished; tergite 4 anteriorly polished grading into punctate laterally and posteriorly; remaining tergites finely punctate. Abdominal petiole (T2) strong, longitudinally striate, twice as wide as long in dorsal view. T4 the largest tergite. Relative dorsal length of T3-T8: 10:14:1:1:2:1.