Pachyprotasis pailongensis Zhong & Wei

Zhong, Yihai, Li, Zejian & Wei, Meicai, 2015, Six new Chinese species of the Pachyprotasis melanosoma group (Hymenoptera: Tenthredinidae) with a key to the species, Zootaxa 3914 (1), pp. 1-45 : 13-14

Pachyprotasis pailongensis Zhong & Wei , sp. nov.

( Figs. 30, 31 , 52 , 68 , 86 , 101, 115, 127)

Distribution. China (Tibet) ( Fig. 127 ).

Material examined. Holotype: Tibet: ♀, Pailongxiang, Linzhi (29°11′ N, 94°112′ E, 2054 m), 15.06.2009, Gengyun Niu leg. ( CSCS).

Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the type locality, Pailong.

Female ( Figs. 30, 31 ): Body length 9.0 mm. Body black, with white pattern as follows: labrum, clypeus, supraclypeal area connected to a small spot between antennal socket, inner orbit connected to lower part of hind orbit, narrow stripe on upper part of inner orbit connected to an oblique spot on temple, posterolateral margin of pronotum, mesoscutellum except laterally, medial mesoscutellar appendage, metascutellum, an irregular spot on anterior mesepisternum, posterior margin of each tergum, a round spot around spiracle of each tergum, posterolateral margin of each tergum, posterior margin of each sternum; legs black, white are: fore and middle legs dorsally from apex of femora to claws, hind trochanter, basal 2/3 of hind femur. Wings pale brown, subhyaline, stigma and veins dark brown.

Labrum and clypeus smooth, with a few shallow and minute punctures; vertex and frons smooth, punctures and sculpture nearly absent, strongly shiny; mesoscutum with punctures, space between punctures smooth, shiny; punctures on upper mesepisternum large, rough, on lower part minute and dense, space between punctures with dense sculpture, slightly shiny; anepimeron with distinct sculpture, luster absent, katepimeron smooth, sculpture indistinct, shiny; metepisternum with dense, minute and shallow punctures, luster absent, metepimeron with sparse, minute and shallow punctures, slightly shiny ( Fig. 86 ); middle of mesoscutellum smooth, punctures absent, laterally with sparse, shallow and minute punctures, sculpture absent, shiny; mesoscutellar appendage with shallow, minute punctures and dense sculpture, slightly shiny; punctures on terga sparse, shallow and minute, sculpture and luster distinct; outer hind coxa with large and deep punctures.

Anterior margin of labrum truncate; clypeus roundly incised to about 1/3 of its medial length, lateral lobe blunt; malar space broader than diameter of median ocellus; inner margins of eyes slightly convergent downwards; supra-antennal tubercle indistinct; frontal area not elevated, distinctly lower than top of eyes in lateral view; frontal ridge blunt; median fovea indistinct, lateral fovea shallow ( Fig. 52 ); interocellar and postocellar furrow shallow; postocellar area slightly elevated, 1.8 times as broad as long, lateral postocellar furrows deep, straight; head distinctly narrowed behind eyes in dorsal view ( Fig. 68 ). Antenna shorter than combined length of thorax and abdomen, flagellomere 1 slightly longer than flagellomere 2, some apical flagellomeres compressed. Mesoscutellum elevated, lateral carina sharp, mesoscutellar appendage with acute middle carina. Hind tarsomere 1 distinctly shorter than combined length of following 4 tarsomeres, claw with inner tooth distinctly longer than outer tooth. Fore wing with middle petiole of anal cell longer than 1/2 length of basal part of anal cell, distinctly longer than vein R+M; petiole of hind wing anal cell shorter than 1/2 vein cu-a.

Ovipositor sheath shorter than hind tarsomere 1 in lateral view, valvula 3 round at apex and 1.5 times as long as valvifer 2. Lancet with 22 serrulae (Fig. 101), base of each serrula elevated, middle serrula each with 2 basal denticles and 11–12 distal denticles (Fig. 115).

Male. Unknown.

Discussion. This species is similar to P. hengshani and may be distinguished as follows ( P. hengshani in parentheses): vertex and frons without punctures and sculpture, strongly shiny (vertex and frons with punctures and sculpture, slightly shiny); labrum, clypeus and suproclypeal area completely yellow-white (labrum white, medially with dark brown spot, clypeus and suproclypeal area completely black); median mesoscutal lobe, mesopleuron and metapleuron completely black (median mesoscutal lobe with lateral part anteriorly white, hind margin of mesepimeron and metepimeron with white); basal 2/3 of hind femur yellow-white (basal 1/3 of hind femur yellowwhite); all terga posterior with white margin but without triangular spot (all terga posterior with large yellow-white triangular spots). It is also similar to P. maculopediba and may be distinguished as follows ( P. maculopediba in parentheses): vertex and frons without punctures and sculpture, strongly shiny (vertex and frons with punctures and sculpture, slightly shiny); labrum, clypeus and suproclypeal area completely yellow-white (labrum white, medially with dark brown spot, clypeus and suproclypeal area completely black); median mesoscutal lobe and mesopleuron completely black (median mesoscutal lobe with lateral part anteriorly and apex white, lower part of mesepisternum with a white posterior stripe); basal 2/3 of hind femur yellow-white (basal 1/3 of hind femur yellow-white); all terga posterior with white margins but without triangular spot (only terga 3–5 posterior with middle yellow-white stripes). Except for serrulae and punctures on vertex and frons, reliable morphological differences between these three species were not found.

Figures

FIGURE 127. Geographical distribution of species of P. melanosom a group in China (3).

FIGURES 30 – 33. Dorsal and lateral view: 30 – 31. P. pailongensis, female, holotype; 32 – 33. P. qilianica, female, holotype.

FIGURES 50 – 53. Face in front view: 50. P. nigroclypeata, female; 51. P. nitididorsata, female; 52. P. pailongensis, female; 53. P. qilianica, female.

FIGURES 66 – 71. Head in dorsal view and face in front view: 66. P. nigroclypeata, female; 67. P. nitididorsata, female; 68. P. pailongensis, female; 69. P. qilianica, female; 70. P. xibei, male, head in dorsal view; 71. xibei, male, face in front view.

FIGURES 84 – 88. Thorax in lateral view: 84. P. nigroclypeata, female 85. P. nitididorsata, female; 86. P. pailongensis, female; 87. P. qilianica, female; 88. P. xibei, male.