Zethus asperipunctatus Wang & Li, 2019

Wang, Hua-Chuan, Chen, Bin & Li, Ting-Jing, 2019, Three new species of the genus Zethus Fabricius, 1804 (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Eumeninae) from China, with an updated key to the Oriental species, Journal of Hymenoptera Research 71, pp. 209-224 : 212-215

Zethus asperipunctatus Wang & Li sp. nov.

Figs 13-25

Material examined.

Holotype, ♀: CHINA, Yunnan, Lijiang City, Yulong County, Hutiaoxia , 27°22.953'N, 99°53.157'E, 7.VI.2009, Meicai Wei leg. (CSUFT).

Description.

Female: body length 16.2 mm ( Fig. 13 ), fore wing length 13.7 mm. Black, the following parts ferruginous: marking on dorso-inner margin of antennal socket, antennal scape lower area ventrally, pronotum in dorsal view, tegula, dot on lateral of metanotum, apical bands on T1, T2, T3 and middle of S2 ( Fig. 13 ).

Head. Head with long setae, their length distinctly longer than 2 × posterior ocellar diameter; head about 1.3 × as wide as high in frontal view ( Fig. 14 ), about 1.7 × wider than long in dorsal view ( Fig. 15 ); mandible with four blunt teeth and dense setae, its outer surface with coarse punctures; clypeus convex in lateral view and about 1.3 × as wide as high in frontal view, with basal margin almost straight, minutely bi-dentate apically, depressed space between teeth with a median carina, width of truncation 1/3 × width of clypeus between inner eye margins, clypeus with dense and long setae and dense punctures ( Fig. 16 ); frons with long setae and dense punctures; vertex and gena with dense punctures; gena slightly wider than eye in lateral view and without longi tudinal carina ( Fig. 17 ); distance from posterior ocelli to apical margin of vertex 1.7 × as long as distance from posterior ocelli to inner eye margin ( Fig. 15 ); occipital carina complete ( Fig. 15 ); antennal scape 2.7 × as long as its apical width, A3 1.8 × as long as its maximum width, A4 slightly longer than its maximum width, A5-11 wider than long, A12 bullet-shaped, as long as its basal width ( Fig. 18 ).

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma about 1.3 × as long as wide in dorsal view ( Fig. 19 ); pronotal carina complete, pronotum with distinct humeral angle and reticulate punctures dorsally; notaulix complete, mesoscutum with dense punctures, gradually shallow from the anterior to posterior portion; tegula smooth, with dense and short setae on its anterior and posterior lobe; epicnemial carina distinct; mesopleura with deep and dense punctures; scutellum flattened, and with shallow punctures and middle longitudinal furrow almost invisible, distance between punctures about as wide as punctures diameter; punctures on metanotum like those on scutellum, but deeper; metapleuron almost smooth; propodeum dull, with lateral carina and without submedian carina, its dorsolateral surface with reticulate striae ( Fig. 20 ), submarginal carina produced into lamella above propodeal valvulae, lateral surface of propodeum with sparse and fine punctures ( Fig. 21 ); orifice angled dorsally ( Fig. 20 ).

Metasoma. T1 about 2.2 × as long as wide, with medial carina from basal margin to one-third of the tergum, gradually widening from one-fourth of the base, then narrowly toward apex, with maximum width about 3.3 × its basal width, T1 with coarse and dense punctures ( Fig. 23 ) and lateral carina of T1 present wholly ( Fig. 24 ); BS of S1 without longitudinal carina and with sparse punctures, lateral portion of AE with weak striae and sporadic punctures ( Fig. 24 ); T2 without distinct petiole, gradually swollen from the base to midpoint and nearly straight to apex in lateral view, with developed apical lamella, about 1.3 × as long as wide in dorsal view, T2 with dense punctures, which gradually sparse from the base to apex, distance between punctures on the base distinctly less than its diameter and 1-2 × larger than puncture diameter on apical margin ( Fig. 25 ); S2 swollen from the base to near midpoint, subsequent portion nearly straight in profile ( Fig. 22 ), punctures on the base of S2 large, punctures on subsequent portion like those on T2, but punctures on lateral portion dense, apical margin of S2 with lamella, T3 and S3 with dense and small punctures, T3 with thick apical lamella, and subsequent terga and sterna with small punctures, distance between punctures about as wide as its diameter.

Male.

Unknown.

Distribution.

China: Yunnan.

Remarks.

This new species resembles Z. nigerrimus Gusenleitner, 2001 from China, Malaysia, Laos and Vietnam, with which it has the following common characters: clypeus minutely bi-dentate apically, depressed space between teeth with a median ridge ( Fig. 16 ), T1 about 2.2 × as long as wide ( Fig. 23 ), T2 without distinct petiole ( Fig. 25 ), S2 not tuberculate in profile ( Fig. 22 ). It differs from Z. nigerrimus and all other members of the genus by the following character combination: body with ferruginous marking ( Fig. 13 ), gena without carina ( Fig. 17 ); BS of S1 with sparse punctures ( Fig. 24 ), S2 blunt angulate in profile ( Fig. 22 ), and propodeum and metasoma dull and with dense setae and punctures ( Figs 13 , 21 , 22 ).

Etymology.

The specific name Zethus asperipunctatus is derived from two Latin words: asper and punctatus, referring to metasoma dull and with dense punctures.

Figures

Figures 13 - 25. Zethus asperipunctatus sp. nov., holotype 13 habitus in dorsal view, ♀ 14 head in frontal view, ♀ 15 vertex, ♀ 16 clypeus, ♀ 17 gena, ♀ 18 antenna, ♀ 19 mesosoma, ♀ 20 propodeum in dorsal view, ♀ 21 propodeum in lateral view, ♀ 22 metasoma in lateral view, ♀ 23 T 1, ♀ 24 S 1, ♀ 25 T 2, ♀.