Probrachista turtukensis Manhas, Anis & Khan, 2023

Khan, Mohd Talib, Anis, Shoeba Binte, Zaidi, Nida, Irfan, Mohd & Manhas, Safeer Ahmed, 2023, Description of a new species of Probrachista (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Trichogrammatidae) from Ladakh, India, Zootaxa 5249 (5), pp. 585-588 : 586-588

Probrachista turtukensis Manhas, Anis & Khan sp. nov.

( Figures 1–9 )

Description

Female. Habitus ( Fig.1 ), body length 0.92mm. Head with frontovertex black; eyes dark. Antennae with scape black except anterior third pale; pedicel with basal half black, rest pale; clava with apical segment black, rest pale brown. Mesosoma with pronotum, mesoscutum, scutellum, axillae, metanotum and propodeum black. Fore wing lightly infuscate basally and strongly infuscate below stigmal vein. Fore legs black, except knee and ventral third of femur pale brown. Mid and hind legs black, except apical third of tibia and tarsus pale brown. Gaster with T–IVII with narrow brown bands alternating with broad pale bands.

Head ( Fig.2 ) with mandible tri-dentate ( Fig.3 ). Antenna ( Fig.4 ) with scape 3.9× as long as broad, and 1.11× as long as pedicel; pedicel 4.2× as long as broad; funicle 1-segmented, 4× as long as broad, and longer than combined lengths of C1 and C2; clava compact,3-segmented, 3.6× as long as broad. Relative measurements: antenna, length (width): scape, 47 (12); pedicel, 42 (10); funicle 32 (8); clava, 54 (15); lengths of C1, C2 and C3, 16:14:24.

Mesosoma ( Fig.7 ). Mid lobe of mesoscutum 1.5× as broad as long, and 1.4× as long as scutellum; scutellum 2× as broad as long; axillae each with 1 seta. Fore wing ( Fig.5 ) densely setose, 2.24× as long as broad; marginal fringe of fore wing 3.8× wing width. Hind wing ( Fig.6 ) about 16× as long as broad; marginal fringe 2.8× wing width; T1 with pale striations nearly 3× as long as dark band medially. Relative measurements: length of mesosoma, 120; median length of metanotum, 5; median length of propodeum, 5; fore wing length and width (at 10×), 112 (98); marginal vein length, 16; premarginal vein length, 6; stigmal vein length, 6; length of marginal fringe of fore wing, 13; hind tibia, 170.

Metasoma ( Fig.9 ). Ovipositor ( Fig. 8 ) short, arises from basal third of gaster and approximately 0.68× as long as hind tibia length; gaster with TI–VII with narrow brownish bands alternating with broad pale bands. Relative measurements: length of ovipositor, 117.

Male: unknown

Material Examined. Holotype ♂ (on slide) (ZDAMU, registration No. HYM.CH855), INDIA: Ladakh; Turtuk , 34.8475° N, 76.8274° E, 15.v.2022, coll. M. Irfan. Paratype,4 ♂ with same data as holotype (2 specimens on slides, one specimen with gaster dissected; 2 mounted on cards) (ZDAMU, registration No. HYM. CH 855).

Host. Unknown.

Distribution. India (Ladakh).

Comment: The species Probrachista turtukensis is similar to P. bharatensis but differs from it in the following characters: head with frontovertex black; antennal clava 3.6× as long as broad; funicle segment longer than combined lengths of C1 and C2; fore wing infuscate below stigmal vein; gaster with TI–VII with narrow brownish bands alternating with broad pale bands. In P. bharatensis , the head is brown with frontovertex white; funicle shorter than combined length of C1 and C2; forewing infuscate from base to the level of stigmal vein; gaster with TI–V with broad brownish bands alternating with narrow pale bands, TVI &VII completely brown.

Etymology. The species name “ turtukensis ” is based on the name Turtuk, the locality where the specimens were collected.

Figures

FIGURES 1–9. Probrachista turtukensis sp. nov., female: 1, habitus; 2, head; 3 mandibles; 4, antenna; 5, fore wing; 6, hind wing; 7, mesosoma; 8 ovipositor; 9, body. Figures 4, 7 & 8 are taken from the Paratype. All other images are taken from Holotype.