Ceratacis afrotropica, Buhl, 2014

Buhl, Peter Neerup, 2014, New species and new records of Platygastrinae and Sceliotrachelinae from Togo (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae), African Invertebrates 55 (1), pp. 68-68 : 71-72

Ceratacis afrotropica sp. n.

Figs 5–9

Etymology: The name draws attention to the fact that this is the first described Afrotropical species of the genus.

Diagnosis: Female A4 long and widened, at its longest hardly shorter than the following three segments combined; scutellum much below mesoscutum, posteriorly with a tiny, upwards-directed tooth.

Description:

Female.

Body length 0.75 mm. Black, tegulae and T1 dark brown; A1–A6, mandibles and legs including coxae light brownish yellow, A7–A10 slightly darkened. Head from above ( Fig. 5 ) 1.9× as wide as long, wider than mesosoma (16:14), distinctly reticulate-coriaceous, on occiput and lower half of frons transversely so. Hyperoccipital carina distinct and complete. LOL=1.4 OOL. Head in frontal view wider than high (16:14). Antenna ( Fig. 6 ) with A1 0.8× as long as height of head, 1.1× as long as distance between inner orbits. Mesosoma 1.4× as long as wide, 1.2 × as high as wide. Sides of pronotum faintly longitudinally reticulate along wide upper and anterior margins, smooth below and behind. Mesoscutum evenly covered by moderately dense setae, finely and uniformly reticulate-coriaceous, without notauli; hind margin raised high above scutellum, medially with a brownish smooth, transverse, rounded prolongation, at each side narrowly brownish along hind margin and with dense whitish pubescence behind it. Mesopleuron finely longitudinally striated in about upper 0.4, the rest smooth. Scutellum ( Fig. 7 ) triangular in dorsal view, along middle almost smooth and bare, towards sides dull and with a few setae, in lateral view with a tiny, upwards-directed tooth, scutellum below this tooth slightly brownish. Metapleuron smooth and bare, with pilosity along hind margin. Propodeal carinae brown, parallel; area between them about as long as wide, smooth. Fore wing hardly shorter than entire body, 2.4× as long as wide, faintly infuscated and with fine and dense microtrichia; marginal cilia absent. Hind wing 7.8× as long as wide, with two hamuli; marginal cilia 0.6× width of wing. Metasoma ( Fig. 8 ) as long as mesosoma and 0.9× as wide. T1 with two strong longitudinal carinae. T2 with two short, slightly pubescent basal foveae, rest of tergite smooth except for reticulate microsculpture along narrow hind margin, T3–T6 with similar microsculpture over most of surface and a few very inconspicuous setae.

Male.

Body length 0.70 mm. Antenna ( Fig. 9 ) with flagellar pubescence about half as long as width of segments; fore wing with sparse microtrichia, marginal cilia 0.12× width of wing; otherwise as in female.

Comparison: Distinct on account of shape of female antenna and of scutellum, but nevertheless approaching the morphology of e.g. Palaearctic C. cochleata (Walker, 1835) .

Holotype: ♀ TOGO: Région des Plateaux, Lavié­Todji N of Huimé, NE of Kpalimé (07°01'16"N 00°39'41"E), 18.iv.2008, 560– 575 m, remains of secondary rainforest, dense bank vegetation with much Anubias gigantea A. Chev. ex Hutch. , swept, M. von Tschirnhaus.

Paratype: 1♂, same data as holotype .

Figures

Figs 5–9. Ceratacis afrotropica sp. n.: (5) head in dorsal view; (6) female antenna; (7) scutellum and propodeal carinae in lateral view; (8) female metasoma in dorsal view; (9) male antenna.