Temelucha basiornata ( Cameron 1911 )

Rousse, Pascal, Villemant, Claire & Seyrig, Andre, 2011, Ichneumonid wasps from Madagascar. V. Ichneumonidae Cremastinae, Zootaxa 3118, pp. 1-30 : 18

Temelucha basiornata ( Cameron 1911)

( Figs. 10a–b )

Androna basiornata Cameron 1911: 189

Diagnosis. Temelucha basiornata lacks obvious structural characters to differentiate it from other Temelucha spp. in the studied area. However, it can be easily distinguished by the coloration of the metasoma, all tergites being reddish orange with a median blackish marking of variable size.

Description. FEMALE. L: 3.5 (3.2–4.4) (10 specimens).

Head. Strongly constricted behind eyes, temples short and rounded. Frons and vertex finely granulate. Face densely and clypeus moderately punctate-shagreened, medially convex. Clypeus transverse (Ci = 2.2), its ventral margin finely impressed. Malar space short (MLMi = 0.8); lateral ocelli distant from eyes by about their greatest diameter and more from each other (OOi = 1; IOi: 1.4). Flagellum with 29–33 flagellomeres.

Mesosoma . Densely punctate-shagreened. Pronotum almost smooth with weak median transverse striation. Meso- and metapleuron somewhat smoother than mesonotum, speculum smooth and transversally finely striate. Scutellum weakly convex, without lateral carina, its surface punctate with smooth interpuncture spaces. Propodeum densely punctate shagreened, except for the area superomedia centrally shagreened. Area basalis trapezoidal, area superomedia hardly delimited apically, area petiolaris with transverse wrinkles.

Metasoma. Tergite I with weakly impressed oblique glymma. Postpetiole obviously swollen, slightly aciculate dorsally. Tergite II about 3.5x longer than wide, longitudinally aciculate. Ovipositor moderately long (OTi = 1.6–1.7).

Color. Predominantly yellow orange with orbits, tegula and scutellum lemon yellow. Antennae light brown, scape and pedicellus ventrally yellow. At least ocellar area, occiput, scutoscutellar sulcus and median longitudinal marking on propodeum black brown, this marking covering entire areae basalis and superomedia and generally tapering at base of area petiolaris. In some specimens, dark coloration extends to frons and vertex, mesoscutum with brown central marking and perimeter of scutellum black. Tergite I (at least apically and basally), tergite II (medially) and the following (centrally) infuscate. Legs yellow, apex of hind tibia and tarsus darker. Wings hyaline, pterostigma light brown, translucent.

MALE. Similar to female.

Host records. Unidentified rice stem borer, probably Diopsis sp. ( Diptera : Diopsidae ) ( Zwart 1998).

Comments. This species is morphologically close to T. picta , but T. basiornata is smaller and does not have a black spot on the yellow mesopleuron. The possible host record mentioned by Zwart (1998) is quite unusual, because no Diopsidae , and extremely few dipteran hosts, have been recorded for Cremastinae .

Distribution records. South Africa (Pretoria), Ghana. Madagascar (Antsiranana, Toamasina, Fianarantsoa and Antananarivo provinces) (new record).

Material examined. LECTOTYPE Ƥ ( BNHM HYM 3b 1420), “Pretoria, 14 2 1909, A.J.T. Janse”, P. Cameron coll. 1914–110. Malagasy specimens: 2ƤƤ ( MNHN EY 2459–2461), Nosy Be, November 1933, Olsoufieff coll.; 2ƤƤ ( MNHN EY 2462–63), Amerimandroso, Rive N. du Lac Aloatra, June 1921, R. Decary coll.; 1Ƥ ( MNHN EY 2460), Mt Bity [Ibity mount], January 1930; 1Ƥ ( MNHN EY 3530), Tamatave [Toamasina], January 1934, Olsoufieff coll.; 1Ƥ ( MNHN EY 3531), Ranomafana, October 1938; 1Ƥ ( MNHN EY 3533), Forêt d’Ambalutantaly, 21–23 XII 47, R.P. coll., abdomen broken; 1Ƥ ( MNHN EY 3532), A. Fianandrahana (1600m), 2 April 1974, A. Delobel rec.

Figures

FIGURE 10. a – b Temelucha basiornata (Cameron); c – d: Temelucha minuta (Morley); e – f: Temelucha picta (Holmgren) (left: habitus, right: face).