Rhytidothorax namdapha, Hayat, Mohammad & Kazmi, Sarfrazul Islam, 2011

Hayat, Mohammad & Kazmi, Sarfrazul Islam, 2011, On some Encyrtidae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) from Namdapha Tiger Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh, India, Zootaxa 2830, pp. 1-19 : 6-7

Rhytidothorax namdapha sp. nov.

( Figs 9–14 )

Female. Holotype. Length, 1.55mm. Body completely dark brown to nearly black; frontovertex dull bluish green, pronotum and mesoscutum dull black with violet shine; scutellum mostly bluish green, with some purple shine, declivous sides and apex bluish green and smooth; tegula black; gaster blackish, with violet and purple shine, TI antero-laterally bluish. Antenna with radicle dark brown; scape brownish yellow, brown along margins; pedicel in basal two-thirds brownish, apical third yellow; flagellum dark brown ( Fig. 9 ). Wings hyaline. Legs brownish yellow except fore and mid coxae and fore femur dark brown to nearly black.

Head. Eyes over-reaching occiput posteriorly; scrobes broadly U-shaped, with narrow but rounded margins; antennal toruli placed nearer mouth margin, much below a line drawn across lower margin of eyes; ocellar triangle with apical angle obtuse; frontovertex with fine, raised reticulate sculpture and with sparse, small, thimble-like setigerous punctures, these in two lines in front of anterior ocellus on each side of frons; setae on head brown; eyes setose, setae transparent, and each about as long as a facet. Mandible with two pointed teeth and a small receding short tooth, the middle tooth longest. Maxillary palp 4-segmented, labial palp 3-segmented. Antenna as in Fig. 9 ; scape about 6x as long as broad; F1 about 0.5x of pedicel; funicle segments except for F1quadrate (F2) to slightly (F3) to distinctly (F6) broader than long; clava about as long as F3–6 combined, and with third segment obliquely truncate. Relative measurements — head dorsal width, 46.5; frontovertex width at anterior ocellus, 14; eye height, 31.5; malar space, 12; POL, 7; OOL, 1; OCL, 2; scape length, 22.

Mesosoma slightly longer than gaster (58: 52); scutellum with a thin apical flange; propodeum about 0.16x scutellum length ( Fig. 13 ); mesoscutum with irregular, polygonal reticulations and fine setigerous punctures; scutellum with raised reticulate sculpture, the cells elongated, lineolate on sides, but extreme sides and apex smooth ( Fig. 13 ), sculpture deeper than on mesoscutum; mesopleuron with fine reticulations; setae on thorax brown except silvery white along lower margin of metapleuron and on sides of propodeum. Fore wing 2.42x as long as broad; venation extending 0.49x wing length; marginal vein 1.52x as long as postmarginal vein; stigmal vein 1.34x as long as marginal vein, and 2x as long as postmarginal vein ( Fig.10 ). Hind wing 3.34x as long as broad; venation extending 0.68x wing length; marginal cell with a line of moderately long setae. Fore leg with last segment of tarsus with a comb of setae ( Fig. 11 ). Relative measurements — mesoscutum length (width), 24 (45); scutellum length (width), 27.5 (27); (slide) — propodeum median length: scutellum length = 8:38.

Gaster. Hypopygium with a deep V-shaped notch in posterior margin ( Fig. 12 ); ovipositor as in Fig. 14 . Relative measurements (slide) — TVII length, 50; ovipositor length, 45.5; mid tibia length, 56.5; mid basitarsus length, 14; mid tibial spur length, 11.

Male. Unknown.

Material examined. Holotype, female (on slide under 5 coverslips, slide No. EH. 1307; right antenna missing) labelled “ INDIA: Arunachal Pr. Namdapha Tiger Reserve, Daphabum Road, 09.xi.2009 Coll.: P. M. Sureshan” (“ NZSI 12341/H3” on a red ticket).

Host. Unknown.

Distribution. India: Arunachal Pradesh.

Comments. This species is very similar to R. pectinatum Singh & Agarwal (1993a , b; see also Hayat, 2006), but differs in having the antennal toruli with their upper margins below the level of the lower margins of the eyes and very close to the mouth margin; F2 quadrate; clava with second suture oblique and third segment obliquely truncate; scutellum with elongate reticulate sculpture except becoming lineolate reticulate on sides; marginal vein 1.52x as long as postmarginal vein; ovipositor 0.8x as long as mid tibia. In R. pectinatum : upper margins of antennal toruli are in line with lower margins of the eyes and are separated from the mouth margin by a distance greater than half the height of a torulus; F2 broader than long; clava with second suture perpendicular and only apex of third segment transversely truncate; scutellum with polygonal reticulate sculpture in about middle third, but becoming elongate reticulate on sides; marginal vein about as long as postmarginal vein; ovipositor 0.92x as long as mid tibia In both these species the last segment of fore tarsus is provided with a comb of setae.

Etymology. The species name is derived from the first name Namdapha of the Namdapha Tiger Reserve.

Figures

FIGURES 9 – 14. Rhytidothorax namdapha sp. nov., female: 9, antenna; 10, fore wing venation; 11, fifth segment of fore tarsus; 12, hypopygium; 13, distal part of mesosoma; 14, ovipositor.