Leptacis nigrotrochanterica, 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 : 84-85

Leptacis nigrotrochanterica sp. n.

Figs 23–26

Etymology: From Latin niger and trochanter, meaning “black trochanters”; in reference to the trochanters which are contrastingly darker than rest of legs.

Diagnosis:A middle-sized species with hyperoccipital carina distinct but weak; female A4 about 1.5× as long as A3, very slightly more than twice as long as wide; A9 1.4× as long as wide; scutellar spine as long as propodeum and rather thick in lateral view; marginal cilia of fore wing 0.14× width of wing; female metasoma 0.8× as long as rest of body.

Description:

Female.

Body length 1.1 mm. Shiny black, including coxae and trochanters; A1, mandibles and fore and mid legs light brownish; A2–A6 and apex of mid tibiae slightly darkened; hind legs medium brown with darkened apical third of tibiae; last segment of all tarsi slightly darkened, A7–A10 dark brown. Head from above ( Fig. 23 ) 1.85× as wide as long, 1.2× as wide as mesosoma; occiput finely and slightly transversely reticulatecoriaceous; hyperoccipital carina distinct and nearly complete but weak; vertex and frons weakly reticulate-coriaceous, in lower half of frons distinctly transversely so. OOL hardly half as long as diameter of lateral ocellus. Eyes bare. Head in frontal view 1.2× as wide as high. Antenna ( Fig. 24 ) with A1 0.83× as long as height of head, 1.25× as long as distance between inner orbits; A9 1.4× as long as wide. Mesosoma one and two-thirds as long as wide, 1.15× as high as wide. Sides of pronotum smooth except for very faint sculpture in upper anterior corner, with only about 10 inconspicuous setae close to margins. Mesoscutum with sparse, short, scattered inconspicuous setae, finely and uniformly reticulate­coriaceous; notauli absent; hind margin medially with a very small convexity, without setation above the triangular scuto-scutellar grooves. Mesopleuron smooth. Scutellum ( Fig. 25 ) with only a few setae, finely leathery; spine as long as propodeal carinae, brownish only at apex, without lamella. Metapleuron smooth, bare only medially along anterior margin, rest of surface with sparse pilosity. Propodeal carinae low, dark, parallel, well separated, area between them slightly longer than wide. Fore wing clear, 0.8× as long as body, 2.6× as long as wide, with fine and very sparse microtrichia; marginal cilia 0.14× width of wing. Hind wing 7.5× as long as wide; marginal cilia two-thirds the width of wing. Metasoma ( Fig. 26 ) 0.8× as long as head and mesosoma combined, hardly longer than mesosoma (30:29) and 1.1× as wide. T1 with three rather robust longitudinal carinae, laterally slightly pubescent and with a few long setae. T2 1.1× as long as wide, with two slightly pubescent basal foveae to 0.1 of length, having a few longitudinal striae on the outer slopes of foveae, otherwise smooth. T3–T5 each with a transverse stripe of rugosity, T6 reticulate-coriaceous all over. Apical tergites with fine setae inserted in shallow punctures (very few on T3– T4, 12 on T5).

Comparison: This species runs to L. papei Buhl, 2011 , in Buhl’s (2011 b) key, but that species has more slender antennae, a longer and thinner scutellar spine, and longer marginal cilia of wings. Cf. also Buhl (2011 b).

Holotype: ♀ TOGO: Région des Plateaux, Cascade d’Ayomé NE of Amlamé (07°30'08"N 00°57'20"E), 13.iv.2008, 305– 330 m, at shady creek bank in rock gorge, much Anubias gigantea , swept, M. von Tschirnhaus.

Figures

Figs23–26.Leptacis nigrotrochantericasp.n., female:(23) head in dorsal view;(24) antenna; (25) scutellum and propodeal carinae in lateral view; (26) metasoma in dorsal view.