Coccidencyrtus aries, 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 : 89-91

Coccidencyrtus aries sp.nov.

( Figs 177-181; Hab. E 27)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (overall length about 0.8-1.0mm): scape mostly brown; pedicel and flagellum yellow, pedicel sometimes dusky; coxae white, mid and hind coxae mixed brown; fore femur white, tibia very pale orange with a small brown area proximally; mid femur white with a subapical brown band; mid tibia white to pale orange with a subbasal brown band; hind femur white with a brown subapical band; hind tibia white with a brown subbasal band; gaster dark brown, Gt1 medially and basal sternites pale yellow; frontovertex about 0.4X head width; antenna ( Fig. 177) with scape about 4X as long as broad, funicle with F1 narrower than pedicel, F1-F4 subequal, small, F5-F6 larger, longer than broad; linear sensilla only on F5-F6; clava about as long as funicle and about 4X as long as broad; palp formula 3-2; scutellum ( Fig. 180) with 3 pairs of setae and polygonally reticulate to longitudinally elongate striate-reticulate sculpture, deeper than that on mesoscutum; mid basitarsus with 7 or 8 ventral pegs; mid tibial spur about as long as basitarsus; fore wing with stigmal vein ( Fig. 178) longer than either postmarginal or marginal veins; hypopygium reaching about 0.8X towards apex of gaster; ovipositor ( Fig. 179) nearly 3.5X as long as gonostylus and slightly exserted, the exserted part shorter than mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.00mm; excluding ovipositor, 0.96mm (CPD).

Head dark brown to black with a metallic sheen; occiput with a weak coppery sheen; frontovertex generally with a coppery sheen, mixed metallic dark green near anterior ocellus; scrobal area, temple and gena with a moderate coppery purple sheen; frontovertex, gena and interantennal prominence with a few scattered, inconspicuous, brown setae; maxillary palpus white; radicle dark brown; scape brown in proximal 0.7X, apex very pale yellow; pedicel and flagellum pale yellow, clava slightly dusky; thorax dark brown to black with a weak metallic lustre; pronotum with a coppery sheen; mesoscutum coppery, laterally mixed metallic, dark green; tegula dark purple-brown with a weak sheen; axilla dark purple-brown with a weak brassy sheen; scutellum dorsally virtually matt with a very weak coppery purple sheen, apex and side slightly silky in appearance with a weak coppery purple and brassy sheen; mesopleuron with a moderate purple sheen; fore coxa white; fore femur white, tibia and tarsus very pale orange, tibia with a very inconspicuous brown spot subbasally; mid coxa white, mixed very pale orange ventrally and brownish externally; mid femur white with a broad, slightly oblique, subapical brown band, tibia white to very pale orange with a narrow, subbasal brown band, spur and tarsus very pale orange; hind coxa white, but external face proximally brown; hind femur white in proximal 0.5X with a relatively broad, brown subapical band, extreme apex white, tibia white with a, brown, subbasal band, tarsus very pale orange; wings hyaline, but fore wing ( Fig. 181) with a small, very weakly infuscate area below marginal vein; propodeum dark brown with a weak purple sheen; gaster dark brown with coppery purple, green and blue reflections, Gt1 medially pale yellow, basal sternites pale yellow; gonostylus brown.

Head about 2.5X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.4X as high as deep, tangent to frontovertex forming an angle of about 90° with that of face; occipital margin sharp, not carinate; no distinct oval depression adjacent to eye near occipital margin; ocelli forming an angle of about 85°; frontovertex not widening in front of anterior ocellus, with distinct, fairly coarse, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size generally subequal to eye facet, not shallower above top of scrobes; temple and gena with much shallower, hardly elongate, fine polygonally reticulate sculpture; top of scrobes with shallow, regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture, scrobes smooth; interantennal prominence and mouth margin with slightly shallower, polygonally reticulate sculpture; scrobes shallow, indistinctly margined, broadly ∩-shaped; interantennal prominence dorsally narrowly rounded; antenna as in Fig. 177; scape slightly broadened and flattened, about 4X as long as broad; funicle with F1-F4 subequal, relatively small, subquadrate, F5-F6 larger, subequal and clearly longer than broad; clava about 4.1X as long as broad and about 1.4X as wide as F6, not curved downwards towards apex, about as long as funicle, sutures parallel, sensory area small, at apex only giving it a pointed or narrowly rounded appearance; eye slightly overreaching occipital margin, clothed with dense conspicuous setae, each a little longer than diameter of facet; malar sulcus present, but indistinct; clypeal margin clearly concave, very slightly produced medially. Relative measurements: HW 57, HH 40, FV 23, POL 11, OOL 3, OCL 3, AOL 9, EL 30, EW 27, MS 15, SL 24.5, SW 6.

Thorax with pronotum hardly exposed behind head, its posterior margin broadly concave, not angular medially; pronotum and mesoscutum with similar sculpture to that in ocellar area, but slightly shallower and of smaller mesh; axilla with finer, shallower sculpture than mesoscutum; scutellum with 3 pairs of setae, dorsally with very fine, polygonally reticulate sculpture that is very slightly deeper than sculpture on mesoscutum, and of much smaller mesh, sculpture slightly longitudinally elongate towards side, extreme side and apex completely smooth and shiny; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.9X as broad as long; scutellum ( Fig. 180) about 1.2X as broad as long, apex with a pair of slender, elongate setae; hind femur about 3.9X as long as broad; mid basitarsus with 7 or 8 ventral pegs; mid tibial spur about as long as basitarsus; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 178, 181; propodeum (Fig, 180) medially about 0.08X as long as scutellum. Relative measurements: FWL 52, FWW 22; HWL 36, HWW 8.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about 0.8X to apex; last tergite about 0.65X as long as mid tibia, with apex broadly rounded; ovipositor slightly exserted, the exserted part about 0.5X as long as mid tibial spur or about 0.13X as long as mid tibia.

Paratype. Mandible with two acute teeth and a rounded upper tooth; palp formula 3-2; funicle with linear sensilla present only on F5-F6; ovipositor 179. Relative measurements: OL 55, GL 15.5 [MT 44.5].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 0.75-1.00mm, the mid and hind coxae may be completely pale yellow or very pale orange, the hind tarsus may be slightly dusky and the base of the gaster may be pale yellow, especially ventrally. The specimen from Ecuador excluded from the type material is noticeably paler than the holotype, with the mesoscutum largely metallic green and brassy and the dark markings on the legs less extensive, the scape is also relatively broader.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica, Ecuador.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Heredia, Santo Domingo, INBio Parque , LN 526250 217400, 1100m, iii.2002 (J.A. Azofeifa, J.S. Noyes) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Guanacaste, Pitilla ( ACG), 700m, MT/YPT, 24.i-27.ii.1996 (J.S. Noyes); 1E, Guanacaste, Est. Cacao (ACG) 10°55’N 85°30’W, 1100m, 19-20.ii.2005 (J.S. Noyes); 2E , Alajuela, PN Arenal, Sendero Mena , LN 454170 271800, 600m, 17.iv-19.v.2001 (G. Carballo); 1E , Heredia, OTS La Selva, 10°26’N 84 01’W, 75m, 23.ii.2006 (J.S. Noyes); 5E, Heredia, Estacion Biologica La Selva, 10°26’N 84°01’W, 75m, 28-29.ii.2008 (J.S. Noyes); 1E, Heredia, Estacion Biologica La Selva , 10°26’N 84°01’W, 75m, 22- 24-25.ii.2011 (J.S. Noyes); 2E, Heredia, Estacion Biologica La Selva , 10°26’N 84°01’W, 75m, 22-24.ii.2012 (J.S. Noyes); 2E, Heredia, Estacion Biologica La Selva , 10°26’N 84°01’W, 75m, 25.ii.2016 (J.S. Noyes) ; Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in NHMUK and CNC .

Non type material. ECUADOR, 1E, Napo, Res. Eth. Waorani , 00°39’N 76°26’W, 220m, canopy fog #1757, 4.x.1996 (T.L. Erwin et al.). Material in USNM .

COMMENTS. Coccidencyrtus aries is very similar to thuryus but can be separated by the absence of linear sensilla on F2 with F2 being subequal in size to F1 and F3 whereas in thuryus F2 has linear sensilla and is larger than either F1 or F2 (see key). This can be difficult to see on card-mounted specimens but the two species can be additionally separated on the relative width of the scape, colour of the mid and hind coxae, and the number of pegs on the ventral surface of the mid basitarsus. However, these are more variable characters and may be unreliable. In aries the scape is about 4X as long as broad, the mid coxa is largely brown and the mid basitarsus has 7 or 8 ventral pegs, whereas in thuryus the scape is about 3-3.5X as long as broad, the mid coxa is completely white and the mid basitarsus has only 5 or 6 ventral pegs.