Bracon byurakanicus Tobias, 1976

Rahmani, Zahra, Rakhshani, Ehsan, Samartsev, Konstantin G. & Mokhtari, Azizollah, 2017, A survey of the genera Bracon Fabricius, 1804 and Habrobracon Ashmead, 1895 (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Braconinae) in Iran, Turkish Journal of Zoology 41 (6), pp. 821-840 : 825-827

3.4. Bracon byurakanicus Tobias, 1976 * ( Figures 4a–4f )

Material examined: 23♀♀ 19♂♂: KERMANSHAH Province, Songhor (34°46′41.71″N, 47°36′10.15″E, 1698 m), leg. Z. Sharifi: swept on Amaranthus sp. , 18-07-2013 , 3♀♀ 11♂♂ ( DPPZ); swept on Convolvulus arvensis , 17- 07-2013 , 1♀ ( ZISP); swept on Medicago sativa (DPPZ) : 16-06-2013 , 1♀; 01-09-2013, 2♀♀; swept on Mentha pulegium , 29-06-2013, 4♀♀ ( DPPZ); swept on Trifolium repens , 22-06-2013 , 4♀♀ 1♂ ( DPPZ) , 1♀ ( ZISP); swept on weeds ( DPPZ): 22-04-2013 , 2♀♀; 26-07-2013, 5♀♀ 7♂♂.

Distribution: Armenia, Iran (new record).

Description. Body length 3.5–4.6 mm, forewing length 2.8–3.3 mm. Width of head in dorsal view ( Figure 4a ) 1.65–1.75 times its median length. Transverse diameter of eye (dorsal view) 1.65–1.90 times longer than temple. Face ( Figure 4b ) width 1.55–1.65 times its height with clypeus. Longitudinal diameter of eye 2.7–3.0 times longer than malar space (front view). Hypoclypeal depression 1.3–1.4 times wider than distance from depression to eye. Antennae 28–29-segmented. First flagellar segment 2.0– 2.1 times longer than its apical width; middle segments 1.6–1.9 times longer than wide; penultimate segment 1.7 times longer than width. Mesosoma 1.60–1.65 times longer than maximum height. Notauli ( Figure 4c ) deep. Vein r ( Figure 4d ) of forewing arising slightly behind middle of pterostigma. Vein 1-R1 1.55–1.70 times longer than pterostigma, 3.4–4.5 times longer than distance from apex of marginal cell to apex of wing. Vein 3-SR 2.2–3.3 times longer than vein r, 0.5–0.6 times as long as SR1, 1.15–1.30 times longer than vein 2-SR. Hind femur 3.2–3.4 times longer than wide. Median length of first metasomal tergite ( Figure 4e ), measured from petiolar process, 0.7–0.9 times as large as its apical width. Second metasomal tergite 1.5– 1.9 times as wide basally as its length, 1.1–1.2 times longer than third metasomal tergite. Second metasomal suture deep, sinuate, and crenulate. Ovipositor sheath ( Figure 4f ) about 1.3 times as long as hind tibia and 0.4 times as long as forewing. Face and frons granulate. Propodeum rugose and with longitudinal carina. First metasomal tergite rugose. Second and third metasomal tergites rugose to rugulose, the rest of tergites granulose-punctate. Body black, legs with reddish-brown pattern (forelegs lighter colored). Wings weakly darkened, pterostigma and veins brown.

3.5. Bracon chrysostigma Greese, 1928 ( Figures 5a–5d ) Material examined: 2♀♀ 1♂ : NORTH KHORASAN Province, Maneh va Semelghan, Qaleh-Khan (37°30′32.50″N, 56°46′50.21″E, 840 m), swept on weeds, 01-05-2014, 1♀ 1♂ ( DPPZ), 1♀ ( ZISP), leg. Z. Rahmani.

RAHMANI et al. / Turk J Zool

Distribution: Europe, Russia (European part), Turkey, Israel, Iran.

Description. Body length 2.8–4.0 mm, forewing length 2.3–3.4 mm. Width of head in dorsal view ( Figure 5a ) 1.8–2.1 times its median length. Transverse diameter of eye (dorsal view) 1.5–1.8 times longer than temple. Face ( Figure 5b ) width 1.55–1.60 times its height with clypeus. Longitudinal diameter of eye 2.5–2.7 times longer than malar space (front view). Hypoclypeal depression 1.5– 1.6 times as wide as distance from depression to eye. Antennae 21–25-segmented. First flagellar segment about 1.8 times longer than its apical width; middle segments about 1.6 times longer than wide; penultimate segment about 1.6 times longer than wide. Mesosoma 1.3–1.4 times longer than maximum height. Notauli distinct, shallow and not complete. Vein r ( Figure 5c ) of forewing arising distinctly before middle of pterostigma. Vein 1-R1 1.4–1.5 times longer than pterostigma, 3.8–4.3 times longer than distance from apex of marginal cell to apex of wing. Vein 3-SR 1.50–1.65 times longer than vein r, 0.40–0.45 times as long as SR1, 1.1–1.2 times longer than vein 2-SR. Hind femur 3.4 times longer than wide. Median length of first metasomal tergite ( Figure 5d ), measured from petiolar process, 0.75–1.00 times as large as its apical width. Second metasomal tergite 2.7–3.2 times as wide basally as its length, 0.7–0.8 times as long as third metasomal tergite. Second metasomal suture deep, smooth and sinuate. Ovipositor sheath 0.6 times as long as forewing. Body mainly smooth; face and frons granulate. Body black; lateral margins of metasomal tergites yellow. Wings weakly darkened, pterostigma yellow and veins brownish.

Remarks. Bracon chrysostigma is most similar to B. ductor Telenga, 1936 , the species described from Transbaikalia. Large specimens of B. chrysostigma differ by their almost smooth face (largely granulate in B. ductor ), (almost) smooth furrow of the first metasomal tergite and second suture of metasoma (crenulate in B. ductor ), and by reddish-brown pattern in body coloration (body is mostly black in B. ductor ). However, in a large series of B. chrysostigma from the European part of Russia, these distinctions weaken, correlating with variation of body size. In particular, small specimens are darker to black and have distinct granulation on the face. The lack of material on B. ductor from Siberia and Mongolia complicates the estimation of variability in this taxon. Thus, we consider the mentioned specimens from North Khorasan Province as small-sized representatives of B. chrysostigma .

Figures

Figure 4. Bracon byurakanicus Tobias, 1976: a) head, dorsal view; b) head, frontal view; c) mesosoma, dorsal view; d) metasoma, dorsal view; e) forewing and hind wing; f) body, lateral view

Figure 5. Bracon chrysostigma Greese, 1928: a) head and mesosoma, dorsal view; b) head, frontal view; c) forewing and hind wing; d) scutellum, metanotum, propodeum, and first to third metasomal tergites, dorsal view.