Coccidencyrtus harpales, 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 : 118-120

Coccidencyrtus harpales sp.nov.

( Figs 269-274; Hab. E 45)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (overall length about 0.6-0.9mm): scape dark brown; pedicel brown; funicle dusky yellow; clava pale brown; fore coxa white, mid coxa pale yellow, hind coxa brown; fore femur and tibia very pale yellow; mid femur very pale yellow with a subapical brown band; mid tibia white with a subbasal brown band; hind femur and tibia largely brown; gaster dorsally dark brown, medially and ventrally pale orange; frontovertex about half head width; antenna ( Figs 271, 273) with scape about 3X as long as broad, funicle with F1 narrower than pedicel and subquadrate, F2-F3 slightly larger and slightly longer than broad, F4-F5 larger and slightly longer than broad, F6 largest and longer than broad; linear sensilla present on all funicle segments, sometimes absent from F1; clava about as long as F3-F6 combined, about 4X as long as broad; palp formula 3-2; scutellum ( Fig. 274) with 3 pairs of setae and longitudinally elongate polygonally reticulate to striate-reticulate sculpture, deeper than that on mesoscutum; mid basitarsus with 5 ventral pegs; mid tibial spur about as long as basitarsus; fore wing ( Fig. 269) with stigmal vein slightly longer than postmarginal vein and about as long as marginal vein; hypopygium reaching about 0.6X towards apex of gaster; ovipositor nearly 4X as long as gonostylus and slightly exserted with exserted part much shorter than mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 0.84mm; excluding ovipositor, 0.80mm (CPD).

Head dark brown to black with a weak to moderate metallic lustre; occiput with a weak brassy sheen; frontovertex generally metallic dark green mixed coppery, area between posterior ocelli and occipital margin coppery; area above scrobes coppery; scrobal area, temple and gena with a weak brassy and coppery purple sheen; frontovertex with a few, inconspicuous, scattered, brown setae; gena and interantennal prominence with a few scattered, very inconspicuous, brown setae; maxillary palpus white; radicle dark brown; scape brown; pedicel brown; funicle slightly dusky yellow; clava pale brown; thorax dark brown to black with a metallic lustre; pronotum with a weak coppery purple and brassy sheen; mesoscutum relatively bright metallic dark green mixed coppery especially near margins and in anterior half; tegula dark purple-brown with a weak brassy sheen; axilla with a weak coppery purple and brassy sheen; scutellum dorsally virtually matt, but with a very weak coppery purple sheen, extreme side and apex weakly shining and slightly brassy; mesopleuron with a moderate purple sheen; fore coxa white; fore femur and tibia very pale yellow, tarsus slightly dusky, pale orange; mid coxa very pale yellow, mixed brownish externally; mid femur very pale yellow in proximal 0.3X, a broad, dark brown subapical band, extreme apex white, tibia white to pale orange with a subbasal dark, brown band to 0.3X, spur and tarsus very pale orange; hind coxa brown; hind femur with proximal 0.4X white, extreme apex white, remainder brown, tibia white at extreme base, brown to about 0.7X, apex pale orange, tarsus slightly dusky, pale orange; wings mainly hyaline, but fore wing ( Fig. 269) with a small, pale fuscous patch below the marginal and stigmal veins; propodeum dark brown with a weak purple sheen; gaster dorsally purple-brown with coppery purple and green reflections, basal tergites medially very slightly paler, side and venter pale orange, apex of outer plate of ovipositor brown; gonostylus pale brown.

Head about 2.1X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.6X as high as deep, tangent to frontovertex forming an angle of about 100° with that of face; occipital margin more or less sharp, not carinate; no distinct oval depression adjacent to eye near occipital margin; ocelli forming an angle of about 90°; frontovertex clearly widening in front of anterior ocellus, with distinct polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size subequal to or conspicuously larger than eye facet, not shallower above top of scrobes; temple and gena with relatively shallow, longitudinally elongate, fine polygonally reticulate sculpture; top of scrobes with distinct, regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture; interantennal prominence and mouth margin with slightly shallower, polygonally reticulate sculpture; scrobes shallow, indistinctly margined, broadly ∩-shaped; interantennal prominence dorsally rounded; antenna as in Fig. 271; scape very slightly broadened and flattened, about 3X as long as broad; funicle with F1 relatively small, subquadrate, F2-F3 a little larger, subequal and clearly a little longer than broad and subequal, F4-F5 slightly larger, subequal and a little longer than broad, F6 largest and clearly longer than broad, linear sensilla present on F2-F6; clava moderately slender, about 4X as long as broad, about 1.2X as wide as F6, not downcurved ventrally, about as long as F3-F6 combined, sutures parallel, sensory area relatively small, at apex only giving it a weak, obliquely truncate appearance; eye slightly overreaching occipital margin, clothed with dense, conspicuous setae, each about as long as diameter of facet; malar sulcus present, but very shallow and indistinct; clypeal margin evenly very slightly concave; mandible ( Fig. 272) with three teeth, upper tooth rounded; palp formula 3-2. Relative measurements: HW 50, HH 37, FV 24, POL 11, OOL 2.5, OCL 2, AOL 6.5, EL 25.5, EW 22, MS 14.5, SL 18, SW 6.

Thorax ( Fig. 274) with pronotum hardly exposed behind head, its posterior margin broadly concave, not angular medially; pronotum and mesoscutum with polygonally reticulate sculpture that is about as deep as that in ocellar area, and of similar mesh; axilla with similar sculpture to mesoscutum but clearly shallower; scutellum dorsally with very fine, slightly longitudinally elongate, polygonally reticulate sculpture that is a little deeper than sculpture on mesoscutum, extreme side and apex completely smooth and shiny; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.8X as broad as long; scutellum about 1.2X as broad as long, apex with a pair of slender, elongate setae; hind femur about 3.3X as long as broad; mid basitarsus with 5 ventral pegs; mid tibial spur about as long as basitarsus; fore wing with venation and setation as in Fig. 269; propodeum medially about 0.06X as long as scutellum. Relative measurements: FWL 56.5, FWW 26; HWL 37.5, HWW 9.

Gaster with hypopygium ( Fig. 270) reaching about 0.6X to apex; last tergite about 0.7X as long as mid tibia, with apex rounded; ovipositor exserted, the exserted part about 0.4X as long as mid tibial spur or about 0.1X mid tibia. Relative measurements: OL 46, GL 12.5 [MT 47].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 0.64-0.87mm, the legs may be slightly paler than in holotype with brown markings slightly less extensive, the mid coxa may be completely pale yellow, the hind coxa may be only partially brown, Gt1 may be pale orange medially and the fore wing varies between 2.17-2.30X as long as broad.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Puntarenas, Est. Biol. Monteverde, 1540m, 10°20’N 84°49’W, 18-24.ii.2004 (C. Hansson) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Puntarenas, Monteverde Res. 1500m, ii.1980 (W. Mason); 6E, Puntarenas, Est. Biol. Monteverde, 10°19’N 84°49’W, 1540-1890m, 25-26.ii.2007 (J.S. Noyes); 5E, Puntarenas, San Vito, Est. Las Alturas, 8°57’N 82°50’W, 1500-2000m, 17-18.ii.2012 (J.S. Noyes); 3E, Puntarenas, San Vito, Las Cruces, Wilson Bot. Gdns, 8°46’N 82°57’W, 1200-1350m, 19.ii.2015 (J.S. Noyes) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in NHMUK and CNC .

COMMENTS. Coccidencyrtus harpales is very similar to thuryus and apart from the characters given in the key differs in the colour of the hind tibia, the distribution of the linear sensilla on the funicle and the relative length of the clava. In harpales the hind tibia is largely brown without a distinct subbasal brown band, linear sensilla are present on all funicle segments, except sometimes F1 and the clava is about as long as F3-F6 combined, whereas in thuryus the hind tibia is mostly pale yellow with a weak subbasal brown band, linear sensilla are absent from F1 and F3 and the clava is very nearly as long as the funicle.