Seticornuta nigroflava, Alvarado, 2022

Alvarado, Mabel, 2022, Darwin wasps of the genus Seticornuta Morley, 1913 (Ichneumonidae: Metopiinae) in the Neotropical region, with a key to species, European Journal of Taxonomy 839, pp. 149-175 : 167-168

Seticornuta nigroflava sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:5293728A-9434-4967-8709-4DD333EB0F5E

Figs 7 , 10D , 11A

Diagnosis

This species can be recognized by this combination of features: pronotum yellow but centrally black, mesoscutum yellow with three black vittae, and metapleuron three-sided with the margin evenly declivous.

Etymology

The specific epithet ‘ nigroflava ’ is from the Latin ‘ nigra ’, meaning ‘black’, and ‘ flava ’, meaning ‘yellow’, in reference to the entirely black and yellow body of this species.

Material examined

Holotype

GUATEMALA • ♀; “ GUATEMALA: Huehuetenango: Puerta del Cielo 3400m 15.55307 -91.60338 14-VI-2015 ZHFalin ex. Eryngium guatemalense flowers in forest GUAT1F15 123/ SEMC1461629″; SEMC.

Description

Female

MEASUREMENTS. Body length 7.3 mm. Fore wing length 6 mm.

HEAD. Face+clypeus 0.9 × as wide as long; labrum not exposed when mandibles closed; malar space 0.8 × as long as basal mandibular width; lateral ocellus separated from compound eye by 1.1 × ocellar diameter; distance between ocelli 1.2 × maximum ocellar diameter; head posteriorly behind ocellar triangle concave; gena, on lateral view 1.1 × as long as compound eyes; occipital carina complete; antenna with 28 flagellomeres, ratio of length from second to fourth flagellomeres: 1.3:1.2:1.2, subapical flagellomere 1.3 × as long as centrally wide.

MESOSOMA. Epicnemial carina interrupted subapically; metapleuron rectangular, dorsal margin weakly declivous and posteriorly evenly declivous, polished, glabrous; submetapleural carina smooth, anteriorly expanded into a conspicuous rounded lobe. Propodeum with lateromedian longitudinal carina strong, slightly closer subbasally; lateral longitudinal absent; posterior transverse carina absent between lateral and lateromedian longitudinal carinae. Fore wing with Cu1a between Cu1b and 2m-cu 1.5 × as long as Cu1 between Rs&M and 1m-cu. Hind wing with distal abscissa of Cu1 sclerotized throughout, abscissa of M faint.

METASOMA. Metasoma with tergite I 1.2 × as long as posteriorly wide, lateromedian carinae extending 0.2 × length of tergite; tergite II 0.9 × as long as posteriorly wide; laterotergite II 0.5 × as long as wide, wedge-shaped, mesal edge convex; laterotergite III 0.5 × as long as wide, semicircular.

COLOR. Head extensively yellow, frons centrally, interocellar area, vertex posteriorly, upper posterior of gena black, and antennae black; mesosoma predominantly yellow, pronotum centrally, mesoscutum with three longitudinal vittae, area bellow subalar prominence, mesosternum, metapleuron antero-ventrally, propodeum black; metasomal tergites I–VII black, tergites VIII–IX dark brown; wings hyaline.

Male

Unknown.

Remarks

Of all the Neotropical species, this is the only one that has some data about its biology: it was collected while visiting flowers of Eryngium guatemalense Hemsley (Apiaceae) . This represents the first record of the genus for Guatemala ( Fig. 11A ).

Figures

Fig. 7. Details ofSeticornuta nigroflava sp. nov., ♀, holotype (SEMC).A. Habitus, lateral view.B. Facial view C. Head dorsally, mesoscutum, propodeum and first metasomal tergite.

Fig. 10. Seticornuta spp. A–B. S. cortesi Porter, 1998, head. A. Facial view, head ventrally. B. Facial view, head dorsally. C. S. cuckoo sp. nov., ♀, holotype (USUC), metapleuron. D. S. nigroflava sp. nov., ♀, holotype (SEMC), metapleuron. E. S. carinata sp. nov., ♀, holotype (USUC), metapleuron. F. S. quilmes sp. nov., ♀, holotype (USNM). G. S. rufa sp. nov., ♀, holotype (USUC), metapleuron. H. S. muqui sp. nov., ♀, holotype (MUSM). I. S. curupira sp. nov., ♀, holotype (USUC), metapleuron. J. S. anchanchu sp. nov., metapleuron. K. S. flava sp. nov., ♀, holotype (NHMUK), metapleuron.

Fig. 11. Geographic distribution of species of Seticornuta Morley, 1913 in the Neotropical region.