Schoenlandella glabra ( Fischer, 1958 )

Edmardash, Yusuf A., Gadallah, Neveen S. & Sharkey, Michael J., 2018, Revision of the subfamily Cardiochilinae Ashmead, 1900 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) in Egypt, with new records and a new species, Journal of Natural History 52 (5 - 6), pp. 269-297 : 285-287

Schoenlandella glabra ( Fischer, 1958)

( Figures 1 (f), 3(c), 4(c))

Cardiochiles glaber Fischer, 1958 . Polskie Pismo Ent. 28(2): 28, ♀. ‘ Ägypten ’ (Wien, ♀) . Diagnosis

Generally brownish yellow (especially mesosoma), with some parts brownish to blackish; galea as long as height of eye when seen in frontal view ( Figure 4 (c)); inner hind tibial spur more than 3.0× as long as outer one.

Abbreviated description of female

Length of body: 5.7 mm; length of fore wing: 3.3 mm.

Body generally brownish-yellow especially the mesosoma, mesoscutellum darker; with the following parts brownish to blackish: stemmaticum, antenna, tips of mandible, all proboscis, the area between antennal bases, hind tarsus, the groove of metasomal T1, and both T2 and T3 entirely (except laterally for T3). Fore wing: hyaline and slightly infuscated apically, pterostigma (except small basal paler area) and vein 1-R1 entirely black, parastigma pale brown, tegula very pale, the veins 4-SRa, 4-SR, 5-SR, r-m, 3-M and 3-Cub are pale yellow to membranous hardly seen, the rest of the veins brownish. Head: antenna with 30 flagellomeres; glossa bilobed to about 0.4 – 0.5 of its total length (the glossa of this species is fleshy and swollen, so it appeared virtually without cleavage); OOL:AOL:POL:ØOD = 16:5:11:4. Fore wing: 1- SR+M 4.85× as long as m-cu; 2-SR+M 2.28× as long as mcu; 1-M straight, 1-SR moderately bent at it middle point, junction of 4SRb and 5-SR lacking a sharp angle, m-cu 0.28× as long as 1-M; discal cell 0.55× as long as wide; 1-A absent; 1-2A + 3A spectral; 1-Cua 0.31× as long as 1-Cub; 2r 0.66× as long as inside height of SMC2, arising 0.4 along the length of stigma basally; stigma 4.44× as long as wide; angle between 4SRa and Rs 95°; angle between Rs and r-m 90°; spectral node of 3r present; SMC2 0.45× as long as wide; 2 + 3-SR straight at the base. Legs: Fore tibial spur 0.2× as long as basitarsus; hind tibia 9.5× as long as wide apically; inner hind tibial spur 1.3× as long as outer spur, 0.55× as long as basitarsus. Metasoma: stem of T1 0.33× as long as bulb; median field of T2 1.5× as broad as high.

Remarks

Diagnosis of this species agrees with that of Fischer (1958), but in Fischer the fore wing may be more infuscated and propodeum more shining; and there are no brownish spots on the mesosoma but the complete scutellum is darker. This species has a very strong and stout galea compared with other Egyptian species, a fact that agrees with Dangerfield et al. (1999), who stated that this species would have galea more stout than that of most other species in the entire genus, after examining the holotype.

Male

This is the first description of the previously unknown male of this species. Similar to female especially in colour and head covering; but differs in the following: sides of mesoscutum, metanotum and propodeum slightly darker than in female; metasoma obviously tapered towards apex; metasomal T1 and T2 (laterally) and complete T3 – 7 are blackish, with less dense setae than in female. This is in addition to difference in morphometric measurements: length of body: 5.9 mm; antenna with 29 flagellomeres; OOL:AOL:POL:ØOD = 22:5:14:6; fore wing with 1-SR+M 5.2× as long as m-cu; discal cell 0.75× as long as wide; 1-Cua 0.4× as long as 1-Cub; stigma 3.8× as long as wide; angle between 4SRa and Rs 105°; median field of T2 1.3× as broad as high.

Material examined

1♀, Gebel Elba ( Wadi Aideb ) (22.250°N; 36.433°E), 28 – 29 February 1938 (Leg. Priesner) [ PPDD]; 1♂, Gebel Elba (Wadi Aideb) (22.250°N; 36.433°E), January 1939 (Leg. Selim) [ PPDD] .

Distribution

So far endemic to Egypt ( Fischer 1958 as Cardiochiles glaber ; Yu et al. 2012).

Host records

Unknown.

Figures

Figure 1. Dorsal habitus. (a) Cardiochiles priesneri (1× scale line); (b) C. pseudofallax (0.8× scale line); (c) C. weidholzi (0.9× scale line); (d) Schoenlandella acrenulata (1× scale line); (e) S. deserta (1.2× scale line); (f) S. glabra (1× scale line); (g) S. maculata (1× scale line); (h) S. obscuriceps (0.9× scale line); (i) S. pseudoglabra (1× scale line); (j) S. variegata (1× scale line).

Figure 4. (a–c) frontal aspects of head. (a) Cardiochiles pseudofallax (1× scale line); (b) Schoelandella acrenulata (1.2× scale line); (c) S. glabra (1.2× scale line); (d–f) hind tarsus. (d) C. pseudofallax (0.8× scale line); (e) C. weidholzi (0.8× scale line); (f) S. acrenulata (1× scale line); (g) and (h) hind claw (≈8× scale line). (g) S. acrenulata; (h) C. weidholzi.