Cheiloneurus ariston, Noyes, 2023

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 : 406-408

Cheiloneurus ariston sp.nov.

(Figs 1037-1043; Hab. E 153)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.2-1.8mm): body mostly orange with propodeum laterally and gaster basally and apically dark brown, mouth margin brown, temple and gena with a diagonal brown streak, paler areas with a weak metallic sheen, darker areas with a weak to moderate metallic sheen; antenna (Fig. 1041) with scape mostly pale orange, ventral margin partially brown; pedicel pale orange with a dark brown streak; funicle almost completely orange, F1- F2 slightly dusky; clava dark brown; mesoscutum with silvery setae in posterior half; fore and hind coxae white, mid coxa pale orange; legs otherwise more or less completely white to pale orange with some dark brown areas; fore wing (Fig. 1042) mostly infuscate with basal cell mostly hyaline, a small hyaline area at apex of venation, a weaker one opposite and a subtriangular hyaline area at apex; head (Fig. 1040) about 5.4-5.6X as wide as frontovertex, in facial view about as long as broad, subcircular, genae converging, moderately curved inwards, more strongly so near mouth; frontovertex with about 3-7 setae medially between anterior ocellus and scrobes; eye separated from scrobe by about diameter of anterior ocellus or a little less, area between eye and scrobe completely smooth; scrobes moderately deep, sharply margined and carinate below eye; interantennal prominence dorsally acute, with a distinct median ridge and with about 20-30 inconspicuous setae; mandible more or less tridentate; antenna (Fig. 1041) with scape about 2.5-2.7X as long as broad; funicle with segments hardly longer than broad or transverse; linear sensilla on F4-F6; clava 3-segmented, slightly longer than funicle, sensory area enlarged, extending about 0.5X along ventral surface of clava, apex obliquely truncate; head width slightly less than flagellum length; mesoscutum (Fig. 1043) anteriorly with fairly coarse, longitudinally elongate, striate-reticulate sculpture, posteriorly with shallower polygonally reticulate sculpture; scutellum with a distinct, apical tuft of setae; wings fully developed, fore wing (Fig. 1042) about 2.5-2.6X as long as broad; parastigma downcurved; costal cell dorsally naked but for one or two setae at apex, ventrally with a complete or nearly complete line of setae; area below proximal part of parastigma with up to nine or ten setae arranged in two lines, these continued as a single line along cubital vein towards base of wing; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a naked hyaline area that continues a little way into disc (Fig. 1037); apical bristle of postmarginal vein about 0.3X as long as marginal vein; mid tibial spur about as long as basitarsus; propodeum with about 5-7 silvery setae adjacent to spiracle, side naked; syntergum very slightly shorter than mid tibia with apex more or less rounded; ovipositor (Fig. 1038) about 3.8X gonostylus or about 1.4X as long as mid tibia; gonostylus about 1.1-1.3X as long as mid tibial spur; exserted part of ovipositor about 0.3-0.9X as long as mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.50mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.46mm (CPD).

Head largely orange; occiput pale orange with a small, triangular, dark brown mark above foramen; frontovertex orange with a weak brassy sheen, some stronger purple and blue reflections in ocellar area; area between eye and scrobe with a purple and brassy sheen; a curved brown line between mouth margin and toruli; temple with a brown line from occipital margin connecting outside torulus with brown line along mouth margin; temple and gena with a weak brassy, purple and green sheen, stronger purple in brown areas; scrobal area with a very weak brassy and purple sheen; frontovertex clothed with inconspicuous, pale brown setae, a line of more conspicuous, translucent setae below eye; interantennal prominence with moderately dense, short, translucent setae; antenna (Fig. 1041) with radicle pale orange, apex narrowly dark brown; scape orange ventral margin brown ventrally from base to widest part, brown area more extensive on inner surface; pedicel mostly pale orange with a dark brown streak along inner surface; funicle almost entirely orange, but F1 brown ventrally; clava dark brown; maxillary palpus very pale orange; pronotum mostly orange, neck and area above coxa dark brown; propleuron orange, in front of coxa dark brown; prosternum pale orange; mesoscutum orange in anterior two-thirds, posterior one-third slightly dusky, hardly darker with purple and dark blue reflections, posterior margin purple-brown with a slight brassy and purple sheen, anterior part clothed in relatively sparse golden brown and dark brown setae, posterior part with relatively dense silvery setae, mixed with a few dark brown setae; tegula orange, apex orange-brown; axilla and scutellum orange, clothed mainly with dark brown setae, but also a few translucent pale brown setae, scutellar tuft black; metanotum orange-brown; mesopleuron mostly orange with a weak brassy sheen, posteriorly brown with a distinct brassy and purple sheen; mesosternum orange; fore coxa white; fore femur mostly white, apical one-third orange and pale brown, tibia pale orange, dorsal margin pale brown proximally, tarsus pale orange; mid coxa very pale, dusky orange; mid femur white, slightly dusky and pale orange towards apex, tibia largely pale orange with knee brown, an incomplete brown subbasal ring and dorsal margin brown along half its length, spur and tarsus pale orange; hind coxa white; hind femur white at extreme base, otherwise pale orange but weakly margined brown distally, tibia pale orange, tarsus pale orange; fore wing (Fig. 1042) mostly infuscate, hyaline towards base and at apex; submarginal vein largely dusky, pale orange, otherwise venation brown; propodeum orange, medially with a slight brassy lustre, laterally with a slight purple and brassy sheen, side with a weak green, brassy and purple sheen, 3 or 4 translucent, pale setae anterolateral to spiracle; gaster mostly orange with a green, brassy and purple lustre, Gt1 and Gt2 orange-brown laterally, Gt3-Gt5 slightly dusky medially, apex of syntergum dark brown, metallic sheen stronger on darker areas; gonostylus very pale orange.

Head (Fig. 1040) about 5.4X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.6X as high as deep, frontovertex weakly curved to top of scrobes then abruptly angled towards mouth margin, interantennal prominence slightly protuberant; occipital margin sharp, weakly carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 45°; frontovertex quite shiny, with shallow, fairly regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture, slightly deeper in ocellar area, mesh size generally slightly smaller than diameter of eye facet, sculpture slightly transversely elongate immediately above scrobes; interantennal prominence with shallow sculpture; temple virtually completely smooth adjacent to eye, otherwise with shallow, irregular, longitudinally elongate sculpture, gena with slightly deeper, irregular, reticulate sculpture; area between eye and scrobe about 0.75X as wide as diameter of anterior ocellus and completely smooth; scrobes moderately deep, meeting dorsally, sharply margined, carinate below eye, very broadly ∩-shaped, interantennal prominence dorsally acute and with a distinct median ridge; antenna as in Fig. 1041; scape broadened and flattened, broadest below middle and subtriangular, about 2.5X as long as broad; F1 very slightly longer than broad, F2-F6 transverse, segments wider and larger distally so that F6 is largest and widest; clava broadened, slightly longer than funicle, sutures oblique, sensory area very enlarged, extending about 0.5X along ventral surface, giving it a distinct, strongly, obliquely truncate appearance; eye reaching occipital margin, clothed with inconspicuous, short setae that are much shorter than diameter of facet; inner eye margins subparallel and diverging below anterior ocellus; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin medially virtually straight; mandible with one acute tooth and a broad, slightly concave truncation, virtually tridentate; apical segment of maxillary palpus not enlarged, but about 2X as long as radicle. Relative measurements: HW 86.5, HH 89.5, FV 16, POL 6.5, OOL 0, OCL 7.5, AOL 9, EL 59, EW 47, MS 35, SL 46, SW 18.5.

Thorax (Fig. 1043) with pronotum hardly exposed behind head and about 0.6X as long as mesoscutum; pronotum with fairly regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture that is about as deep as that between posterior ocelli; mesoscutum in anterior two-thirds with fairly coarse, longitudinally elongate, striate-reticulate sculpture of similar depth to that on pronotum, sculpture more distinctly cellular medially, posterior one-third with slightly shallower polygonally reticulate sculpture; axilla and scutellum with fairly coarse polygonally reticulate sculpture of similar depth to that on pronotum but axilla with slightly larger mesh, and scutellum medially of smaller mesh, but laterally of larger mesh and conspicuously longitudinally elongate; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.8X as broad as long; scutellum very slightly longer than broad with a distinct subapical tuft, setae mostly about half as long as scutellum; hind femur about 4.7X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 1037, 1041; costal cell with 2 or 3 setae dorsally at apex; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a distinct, naked, hyaline streak (Fig. 1037); mid tibia with a weak external subbasal carina for about half its length; propodeum (Fig. 1043) medially about 0.11X as long as scutellum and virtually smooth. Relative measurements: FWL 88, FWW 34.5; HWL 74, HWW 19.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about 0.4X to apex; syntergum about 0.9X as long as mid tibia, with apex weakly angular, more or less rounded; ovipositor slightly exserted, about 0.3X as long as mid tibial spur or 0.1X as long as mid tibia.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on F4-F6; gaster without “gland-like” structures on Gt1 or Gt5; hypopygium (Fig, 1039); ovipositor (Fig, 1038). Relative measurements: OL 56.5, GL 15 [MT 41].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.23-1.75mm, the head varies from about 5.4- 5.6X as wide as the frontovertex, the interantennal has about 20-30 inconspicuous setae, the scape is about 2.5-2.7X as long as broad, the fore wing is about 2.5-2.6X as long as broad and the exserted part of ovipositor may be about 0.3-0.9X as long as mid tibial spur.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, Maritza ( ACG), 700m, MT/YPT, 20.i-24. ii.1996 (J.S. Noyes) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Guanacaste, same data as holotype; 1E , Puntarenas, PN Corcovado, Los Patos, 200m, 8°33’N 83°30’W, ii.2000 (J.S. Noyes, J. Azofeifa); 1E, Puntarenas, Golfito, Est. Agujas, LS 526550 276750, 300m, #61207, 22.xii.2000 - 9.i.2001 (J. Azofeifa); 1E, Puntarenas, PN Corcovado, Est. Agujas, Queb. La Bonanza , LS 275700 524800, 500m, ii-iii.2001 (J. Azofeifa) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in NHMUK and MZUCR .

COMMENTS. Cheiloneurus ariston can be distinguished from other similar species ( alopes , dirce , amethes , omorus , etc.) by the largely pale orange scape and funicle. Other similar species have the scape and funicle more extensively marked brown.