Caldencyrtus, Noyes & Hanson, 1996

Noyes, John Stuart, 2023, ENCYRTIDAE OF COSTA RICA (HYMENOPTERA: CHALCIDOIDEA), 4 Subfamily Encyrtinae: tribes Arrhenophagini, Habrolepidini, Cerapterocerini, Cheiloneurini, Trechnitini, Cercobelini, Polaszekiini, Protyndarichoidini, Gahaniellini and Syrphophagini (part), mainly primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids of Coccoidea and Psylloidea (Hemiptera), Taxonomic Monographs on Neotropical Hymenoptera (Oxford, England) 2 (11), pp. 1-921 : 625-626

Genus CALDENCYRTUS Noyes & Hanson

Caldencyrtus Noyes & Hanson, 1996:114-115 . Type species: Caldencyrtus mitchelli Noyes & Hanson , by original designation.

Female. Length about 1.9-2.5mm.

Body generally with a weak to moderately strong metallic green sheen

Head in facial view suboval, slightly broader than high and about 2.2-2.6X as wide as frontovertex, in profile more or less evenly curved; occipital margin sharp, carinate at least medially; frontovertex weakly metallic, with shallow indistinct piliferous punctures or with conspicuous, large piliferous punctures; ocelli forming an angle of about 90°; eye with sparse, extremely short setae; malar space about 2/3 as long as eye, suture present and distinct or absent; antennal scrobes shallow, hardly meeting dorsally, not reaching half way from toruli to anterior ocellus; mouth varying from about one-third to half head width; antennal torulus separated from mouth margin by slightly more than its own length, its upper margin about level with lower eye margin or slightly above; antennal scape about 3X as long as broad, subcylindrical to slightly flattened; antennal flagellum filiform, generally about as long as head width or conspicuously longer, all funicle segments longer than broad, except sometimes F6 which may be quadrate; linear sensilla on all funicle segments; clava 3-segmented with apex rounded, sensory area small, at apex only; clypeal margin with a convex or biconvex median lobe; mandible with two teeth and a truncate third, upper tooth, lowest teeth acute, long and widely separated; maxillary palp 4-segmented, labial palp 3-segmented.

Thorax moderately robust with mesoscutum and scutellum moderately convex and with a slight metallic sheen, especially on scutellum where apically it may be relatively strong; notaular lines virtually absent, but present at anterolateral corners of mesoscutum and subparallel to sides of mesoscutum; scutellum about as long as broad, with apex rounded; mesoscutum and scutellum both with similar, fairly deep, coarse, raised, polygonally reticulate sculpture, mesopleuron slightly enlarged posteriorly and usually extending a little way past posterior margin of propodeum and nearly touching base of gaster; mid tibial spur from very slightly shorter to very slightly longer than basitarsus; fore wing about 2.5X as long as broad; hyaline to weakly infused pale brown, sometimes more strongly infuscate in apical half or so; costal cell about 11X as long as broad with at least 1 line of setae dorsally, but sometimes only in distal half; venation with a subapical hyaline break on submarginal vein, parastigma hardly widened, marginal vein 3-4X as long as broad and subequal in length to postmarginal and stigmal veins; linea calva open, filum spinosum present, basal cell moderately setose with a small to moderate sized naked area proximally; propodeum medially about 0.15X as long as scutellum, with some shallow irregular sculpture, usually including some carinae, posterolaterally with at least a small projection above hind coxa (see Fig. 1714) and with conspicuous, moderately dense, silvery setae surrounding spiracle.

Gaster about as long as thorax; cercal plates in basal half of gaster; syntergum about 1.1-1.8X as long as mid tibia; hypopygium reaching about one-third to half-way along gaster, transverse, weakly concave anteriorly with lateral, anterior arms absent or very short without an external notch, posterior margin biconvex with a fairly deep, median invagination; paratergites absent; ovipositor not exserted or hardly exserted with the exserted part never longer than mid tibial spur; ovipositor varying from about as long as mid tibia to 1.8 X as long and 3.0-4.5X as long as gonostylus; gonostylus free.

Male. Length about 1.6-2.0mm.

Very similar to female except for antenna and genitalia.Antenna separated from mouth margin by nearly 2X length of torulus, about level with lower eye margin; funicle 6-segmented with segments slightly broadened, but longer than broad, clothed in relatively short setae, generally not more than one-quarter as long as diameter of segments; clava 2-segmented; aedeagus a little less than half as long as mid tibia; phallobase with paramere developed but short and inconspicuous, digitus moderately long and with an apical hook.

DISTRIBUTION. Currently known only from Costa Rica but certain to occur more widely throughout the Neotropical region.

HOSTS. Reared from galls formed by Triozidae and Psyllidae ( Hemiptera : Psylloidea) on the fruit and leaves of Cinnamomum Spreng. ( Laurales : Lauraceae ) and Ilex L. ( Aquifoliales : Aquifoliaceae ).

COMMENTS. Caldencyrtus may be close to Lohiella Noyes, 1980 , species of both genera having relatively long, subequal marginal, postmarginal and stigmal veins, relatively high placement of antennal toruli, and elongate funicle segments all with longitudinal sensilla. Caldencyrtus can be readily separated from Lohiella because F1 is subequal to, or hardly longer than the pedicel, but if F1 is conspicuously longer than the pedicel then the posterolateral angle of the propodeum has a short, but very distinct finger-like or spine-like projection. Most species of Lohiella have F1 at least about 1.5X as long as the pedicel and none has a projection from the posterolateral angle of the propodeum. The placement of the torulus in Caldencyrtus is generally lower than in Lohiella . In Caldencyrtus the upper margin of the torulus is at most barely above the lower eye margin whereas in Lohiella the middle of the torulus is at least level with the lower eye margin or above. All species of Caldencyrtus have the mandible tridentate, with the upper tooth broadly truncate and, except in balor , the lowermost tooth very long and relatively widely separated from the middle tooth and the mesoscutum and scutellum with very similar, coarse, polygonally reticulate sculpture. In Lohiella the mandibles are sometimes similar to those of Caldencyrtus but the lowest tooth is subequal in length to the others and the sculpture of the scutellum is frequently very different from that of the mesoscutum. In males of Caldencyrtus the clava is 2-segmented whilst in those of Lohiella the clava is 1-segmented. It is highly likely that, as currently understood, Lohiella is an unnatural assemblage of species that requires further systematic investigation.

See also comments under Dalek (p. 636) and Strigenia (p. 172).

The species of Caldencyrtus can be divided into two groups: meresmo group - mesopleuron not extending past posterior margin of propodeum; scape at least 4X as long as broad; process on posterolateral angle of propodeum moderately large, distinct, finger-like or thorn-like; mid tibial spur shorter than basitarsus; known hosts Psyllidae ; acamas group - mesopleuron extending a little way past posterior margin of propodeum; scape less than 4X as long as broad; process on posterolateral angle of propodeum very small, indistinct, hardly more than a bump; mid tibial spur at least as long as basitarsus; known hosts Triozidae .