Apanteles parapholetesor Liu & Chen

Liu, Zhen, He, Jun-Hua & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2015, The lacteus-, laspeyresiella - and mycetophilus - groups of Apanteles Foerster, 1862 (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) in China, with descriptions of eight new species, Zootaxa 3949 (3), pp. 370-392 : 376-379

Apanteles parapholetesor Liu & Chen , sp. n.

Figure 4

Description. Female. Body length ca. 2.1 mm, fore wing length ca. 2.2 mm.

Head. A little rounded in dorsal view, 1.7× as wide as long (22.0:13.0) and slightly wider than mesosoma (22.0:20.5). Temple relatively dull, shallowly, indistinctly punctate, slightly broad ( Fig. 4 d), eye 1.4× longer than temple in dorsal view. Face transverse, 0.8× as high as wide, relatively dull, with small punctures, bulged medially, sparsely pubescent, inner margin of eyes parallel. Ocelli relatively small, distance between fore and a hind ocellus longer than diameter of hind ocelli, posterior tangent to the anterior ocellus hardly touching the posterior pair, POL:OD:OOL=4.0:2.0:4.0. Antenna almost as long as body length, penultimate antennomere 1.5× longer than wide.

Mesosoma. Length to breadth and height 35.0:20.5:23.0. Disc of mesonotum with somewhat satin-like sheen, shallowly punctate, with dense pubescence. Scutellar sulcus slightly curved, narrow without carinae in between. Surface of scutellum as disc of mesonotum. Propodeum highly shiny, almost polished through. without punctation anteriorly. Mesopleuron highly polished, its anterior half with indistinct sparse punctation of even size.

Legs. Spines on outer side of hind tibia thick in size but sparse, glow in reflection. Spurs of tibiae of equal size, 2/5 length of basitarsus. Hind basitarsus as long as tarsal segments 2–4 combined.

Wings. Pterostigma relatively narrow, 3.4× as long as its widest part. Vein 1-R1 (metacarp) 1.2× longer than pterostigma, it is 2.9× as long as its distance from the apex of the marginal cell. Vein r slightly shorter than width of pterostigma, vein r somewhat shorter than vein 2-SR, both veins indistinctly angled at their meeting, vein 2-M 2/5 length of vein 2-SR. 1st discal cell 1/4 wider than high. Vein cu-a more or less straight, weakly oblique inwards. Vannal lobe beyond its widest part straight, without projecting setae.

Metasoma. Indistinctly longer than thorax (37.0:35.0). T1 strongly narrowed to apex, basal width 2× hind width, and short, at most 1.4× longer than basal width. Strongly concave at basal 2/5, relatively shiny, scattered shallow punctures on apical, turned-over part. T2 subtriangular, 2× wider than long in the middle, smooth and shiny. T3 1.2× as long as T2 (6.0:5.0). Tergites after T2 relatively shiny, smooth. Hypopygium distinctly shorter than apex of abdomen. Ovipositor sheath relatively short, 0.6× length of hind tibia (17.0:27.0), relatively thin.

Colour. Body black. Antennae, tegulae and ovipositor sheath brown. Labrum and mandible dark reddish brown. Palpi and spurs of tibiae pale yellow. Pubescence on disc of mesonotum argenteous. Fore wing membrane hyaline, faintly brownish, vein 1-R1 and C+SC+R brownish, pterostigma light brown with darker margins, and alar veins light brown.

Male. Unknown.

Host. Unknown.

Material examined. Holotype: ♀, Dongling, Shenyang, Liaoning, 1994. VII.10, Lou Juxian, No. 947204. Paratype: 1♀, Dongling, Shenyang, Liaoning, 1994. VII.10, Lou Juxian, No. 9471890.

Distribution. China (Province: Liaoning).

Etymology. The specific name “ parapholetesor ”, referring to the resemblance of this species with the genus Pholetesor Mason.

Remarks. This may be a transition species to the genus Pholetesor Mason which is defined by a short ovipositor sheath, satin-like sheen, and reduced scutellar sulcus. However, we prefer to place it in the laspeyresiella- group because of the following decisive features: wedge-shaped T1, straight and setae-absent part of hind wing beyond widest of vannal lobe, light colour of pterostigma, and relatively short metacarp and ovipositor sheath.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Apanteles parapholetesor Liu & Chen, sp. n. a propodeum and T 1 – 3, dorsal view; b head, frontal view; c fore wing (yellow because of glue); d head, dorsal view; e hind wing; f mesosoma, dorsal view; g habitus, lateral view. Scale line = 0.5 mm.