Apanteles (Choeras) tumidus Song & Chen

Song, Sheng-Nan, He, Jun-Hua & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2014, The subgenus Choeras Mason, 1981 of genus Apanteles Foerster, 1862 (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) from China, with descriptions of eighteen new species, Zootaxa 3754 (5), pp. 501-554 : 540-542

Apanteles (Choeras) tumidus Song & Chen , sp. n.

( Figure 16. a–j )

Description. Female. Length of body 2.1 mm, of fore wing 2.6 mm.

Head. Head robust and 1.5 times as wide as long, wider than mesoscutum. Antenna with 18 segments, robust and with short setae, much shorter than body length, subapical antennal segments slightly elongated, length of 16th segment equal to 15th segment, length of third segment 1.3 times as long as fourth segment, length of third, fourth, 15th, 16th and penultimate segments 2.0, 1.5, 1.2, 1.2 and 1.6 times as long as their width, respectively. In dorsal view length of eye 1.2 times as long as temple. Ocellar triangle convex and smooth, strongly shiny and sparsely pubescent. Ocelli in a very high triangle, the posterior transverse tangent to the median ocellus leaving far from the posterior pair, ocelli small, their diameter almost equal to the distance between the hind and fore ocellus. OOL: OD: POL= 14: 4: 7. Frons shiny, smooth and slightly concave medially, narrowly and sparsely setose laterally and posteriorly. Temple and vertex smooth and strongly shiny, sparsely pubescent. Face and clypeus densely setose and strongly shiny. Face transverse, convex and without a median longitudinal carina. Length of malar space 0.8 times as long as basal width of mandible.

Mesosoma. Mesosoma very narrow and long, length of mesosoma 1.9 times as long as its height. Side of pronotum strongly shiny and slightly rugulose, sparsely setose and punctulate, only with an indistinct narrow ventral furrow. Propleuron smooth and strongly shiny. Prepectal carina absent. Precoxal sulcus shallow and largely smooth, except the deepest area rugose. Mesopleuron largely smooth, glabrous and shiny, narrowly and moderately punctulate and setose ventrally. Mesoscutum finely and densely punctulate and setose, indistinct posteriorly and strongly shiny. Notauli absent. Scutellar sulcus wide with several distinct longitudinal carinae, its width about equal to length of scutellum. Scutellum slightly sparsely setose and strongly shiny. Side of scutellum with rather wide crenulate depression, lunula small-sized and obtusely triangular. Propodeum strongly rugose, with a strong and irregular median longitudinal carina.

Wings. Fore wing evenly covered with brown setae, denser towards the apex. Pterostigma relatively wide, 2.6 times as long as wide. Vein 1-R1 1.3 times as long as pterostigma and 1.2 times as long as the distance from it to the top of marginal cell. Vein r straight and equal to length of 2-SR, r arising far beyond the middle of pterostigma and shorter than the breadth of pterostigma. Vein 2-SR straight. Areolet very large and triangular, vein r-m straight and arising from the junction of vein 2-SR and r. 1-CU1: 2-CU1= 1: 1. Vein 1-SR pointing to 1-CU1. Hind wing evenly covered with brown setae. Vein cu-a slightly curved. Edge of vannal lobe beyond its widest part more or less straight. Vannal lobe with distinct hair-fringe throughout.

Legs. Hind coxa strongly shiny, largely sparsely setose, but densely setose dorsally. Length of hind coxa little shorter than half of mesosoma. Tarsal claws setose. Longer spur of middle tibia not reaching apex of middle basitarsus. Length of femur, tibia and basitarsus of hind leg 2.8, 5.6 and 5.7 times as long as their width, respectively. Length of hind tibial spurs 0.3 and 0.6 times as long as hind basitarsus respectively. Hind femur relatively robust, moderately setose and punctulate.

Metasoma. Tergite I very long and distinctly quadrangular, lateral sides more or less straight and almost parallel, strongly rugose and shiny which basally 1/3 with a relatively wide and shallow excavation; basal width equal to its apical width which is 1.4 times as long as median length of tergite II. Tergite II quadrangular, basal width 0.6 times as long as apical width, apical margin curved and 2.3 times as long as its length; strongly rugose and shiny which has a row of hairs on the posterior margin. Remaining tergites smooth, strongly shiny and sparsely setose apically respectively. Ovipositor sheath straight and finely hairy, very robust, its length (total length) half of hind tibia. Hypopygium membranous and slightly folded along the middle line apically and tightly folded along the middle line, acute apically but without longitudinal creases laterally.

Colour. Head dark reddish brown. Labrum, clypeus, mandibles and face dark reddish brown. Scape dark reddish brown. Pedicel and flagellum brown. Mesosoma dark reddish brown. Wing membrane subhyaline and weakly infuscate. Pterostigma brown and veins of fore wings light brown. Veins of hind wing weakly pigmented. Coxa dark reddish brown. Trochanter reddish brown. Fore and middle femur mainly dark reddish brown, in a small area on top yellowish brown. Fore, middle tibia and tarsus yellowish brown except distal tarsi black. Hind femur black. Hind tibia largely reddish brown and yellowish brown basally. Hind tarsus reddish brown. Tibial spurs yellow. Tergite I and II black. Remaining tergites black. Ovipositor reddish brown, its sheath dark brown.

Variation. Body length 1.5–2.1 mm. Fore wing length 1.9–2.6 mm. Some individuals tergite I slightly narrowed basally. And some individuals slightly different in colour pattern.

Male. Unknown.

Biology. Unknown.

Material examined. Holotype, ♀, China, Guizhou Prov., Kuankuoshui Natural reserve, Xiangshuwan, 2010. VI. 3, Tan Jiangli, No. 201001752 ( ZJUH). Paratypes (all in ZJUH): 1♀, China, Hubei Prov., Wufeng, Houhe Natural Reserve, 1999. VII. 11, Bu Wenjun, No. 200104438; 1♀, China, Sichuan Prov., Pingwu, Baimazai, 2006. VII. 25, Zhang Hongying, No. 200615004; 1♀, China, Ningxia Prov., Jingyuan, Liupanshan, Qiuqianjia, 2008. VII. 8, Yao Jiemin, No. 200808501.

Distribution. China (Hubei, Sichuan, Guizhou, Ningxia) ( Fig. 23 ).

Biology. Unknown.

Remark. The new species is similar to Apanteles (Choeras) epaphus ( Nixon, 1965) , but can be distinguished by the mesosoma dark reddish brown throughout (the latter bright yellow throughout); the length of ovipositor sheath (total length) 0.5 times as long as hind tibia (the latter about 1.5 times); and the antenna much shorter than body length (the latter about equal to the body).

Etymology. The specific name “ tumidus ” derives from the Latin adjective “ tumidus ”, referring to the head robust.

Figures

FIGURE 23. Distribution map of Choeras species in China IV. ▲: Apanteles (Choeras) tenuialatus Song & Chen, sp. n.; Δ: Apanteles (Choeras) tumidus Song & Chen, sp. n.; ■: Apanteles (Choeras) validicarinatus Song & Chen, sp. n.; ●: Apanteles (Choeras) varicolor Song & Chen, sp. n.; ┼: Apanteles (Choeras) yunnanensis Song & Chen, sp. n..

FIGURE 16. a – j. Apanteles (Choeras) tumidus Song & Chen, sp. n. a, habitus, lateral view; b, antenna; c, fore wing; d, hind wing; e, head, dorsal view; f, head, frontal view; g, mesosoma, dorsal view; h, T 1 – T 3, dorsal view; i, mesosoma, lateral view; j, metasoma, lateral view.