Encarsia Förster

Shih, Yuan-Tung, Ko, Chiun-Cheng & Polaszek, Andrew, 2008, Encarsia (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) parasitoids of Bemisia species in Taiwan (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), Journal of Natural History 42 (47 - 48), pp. 2923-2941 : 2924-2926

Genus Encarsia Förster

Encarsia Förster 1878: p. 65 –66. Type species: Encarsia tricolor Förster by monotypy. 5 Aspidiotiphagus Howard 1894a: p. 229 , Prospalta Howard 1894b: p. 6 , Prospaltella Ashmead 1904: p. 126 , Encarsiella Hayat 1983: p. 85 . For a full list of generic synonyms see Schmidt and Polaszek (2007a; p. 85–86).

Diagnosis

For a full generic description of Encarsia and a discussion of morphological characters of Encarsia and closely related genera see Schmidt and Polaszek (2007a). The presence of the following character states is required for a positive diagnosis of Encarsia (females): fore and hind tarsi five-segmented; antenna eight-segmented (excluding radicle); scutellum with two pairs of setae; marginal vein longer than submarginal vein; postmarginal vein absent; stigmal vein very short, always less than one-quarter of the length of the marginal vein.

Revisionary studies of Encarsia for the Oriental region are as follows: Taiwan: Chou et al. (1996); Chou and Ko (1999); China: Huang and Polaszek [1996 (as Encarsiella ); 1998]; India: Hayat (1989, 1998); Encarsia parasitoids of Bemisia tabaci: Polaszek et al. (1992) ; Evans and Polaszek (1997).

Key to Encarsia species reared from Bemisia species in Taiwan

1. Fore wing with an asetose area around stigmal vein............... 2

Fore wing without an asetose area around stigmal vein............ 3

2. Body entirely pale yellow; mid-lobe of mesoscutum without setae; fore wing narrow...................... Encarsia aseta Hayat and Polaszek Head, mid lobe of mesoscutum and axilla brown; mid lobe of mesoscutum with two setae; fore wing broad...... Encarsia longifasciata Subba Rao

3. Scutellar sensilla close together, separated by a distance of about the width of one sensillum or less................................... 4 Scutellar sensilla far apart, separated by a distance of more than the width of one sensillum........................................ 7

4. Head and mesosoma dark brown; antennal flagellum broad; postocellar area with four setae.................... Encarsia japonica Viggiani Body entirely pale yellow; antennal flagellum relatively narrow; postocellar area with six setae....................................... 5

5. Stemmaticum with transverse sculpture. T6 with four setae. Fore wing with an area of long setae............ Encarsia sophia (Girault and Dodd) Stemmaticum with reticulate sculpture. T6 with six setae. Fore wing without an area of long setae..................................... 6

6. Ovipositor less than half the length of the mesosoma and gaster combined.............................. Encarsia protransvena Viggiani Ovipositor longer than half the length of the mesosoma and gaster combined........................... Encarsia strenua (Silvestri)

7. Ovipositor longer than mid-tibia and basitarsus combined; F2 with at least one longitudinal sensillum................................. 8 Ovipositor shorter than mid-tibia and basitarsus combined. If occasionally apparently slightly longer, then F2 without longitudinal sensilla...... 9

8. Head entirely brown; anterior margin of mid-lobe of mesoscutum brown; F3 without longitudinal sensilla; fore wing broad. Encarsia magnalata , sp. nov. Head with a dark brown cross band, the rest pale yellow; anterior margin of mid lobe of mesoscutum brown; F3 with one longitudinal sensillum; fore wing narrow.......... Encarsia fuzhouensis Huang and Polaszek

9. Both F1 and F2 without any longitudinal sensilla................ 10 At least F1 with one or more longitudinal sensilla............... 12

10. Axillae dark............. Encarsia synaptocera Huang and Polaszek Axillae pale.......................................... 11

11. Head, pronotum and anterior mid-lobe of mesoscutum brown.... E. duorunga Head and mesosoma entirely pale, only the stemmaticum either pale or pigmented..................................... E. cibcensis

12. F1 without longitudinal sensilla............................ 13

F1 with at least one longitudinal sensillum.................... 15

13. Fore wing with a distinct dark spot on the stigmal vein, followed by a faint longitudinal infuscation.......................... E. obtusiclava

Fore wing without a distinct dark spot on the stigmal vein or any longitudinal infuscation ( E. guangxingana has the fore wing evenly faintly infuscate below the marginal vein).......................... 14

14. Antennal clava distinctly three-segmented; F1 quadrate or transverse; third valvulae dark..................................... E. lutea Antennal clava distinctly two-segmented; F1 longer than wide; third valvulae pale...................................... E. azimi

15. Mesosoma entirely dark............................. E. inaron Mesosoma pale (axillae dark in E. lineolata )................... 16

16. Fore wing lightly infuscate below the marginal vein; mesosoma entirely pale...................................... E. gunagxingana Fore wing hyaline; mesosoma with dark axillae........... E. lineolata

New records and species descriptions