Stenonartonia tekoraava Garcete-Barrett

Garcete-Barrett, Bolívar R., 2014, Stenonartonia tekoraava sp. nov. (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Eumeninae), a new member of a typical Amazonian mimicry ring, Zootaxa 3860 (1), pp. 97-100 : 98-100

Stenonartonia tekoraava Garcete-Barrett , sp. nov.

( Figs 1–5 )

Diagnosis and comments. This species is notable for its brightly contrasting color pattern of black and yellow, including very thin metasomal bands, largely yellow propodeum, metanotum and scutellum, pair of submedial mesonotal lines and thin posterior pronotal border, reminiscent of the social wasp Polybia liliacea (Fabricius) . Wings bright yellow fading into grayish apically, bearing dark veins along costal region. The new species belongs to the group of Stenonartonia occipitalis Garcete-Barrett by most key features, but differs from all of the species by lacking specialized surface area on female vertex and by having cephalic foveae close together into small depression, as in many species of Montezumia Saussure. From other species in the group of S. occipitalis it also differs by having coarser and denser–almost honeycomb-like–mesosomal punctation, by sharper border around propodeal concavity, and by lateral scutellar expansion covered by rough longitudinal striae.

Description. Female. Measurements and proportions. Body length 11.5 mm. Wing length 9.9 mm. Clypeus 1.25 × wider than high and with its apical margin 1.06 × as wide as the interantennal distance. T1 1.28 × wider than long and 0.8 × as wide as T2. S1 broadly crescent-shaped: 4.08 × wider than its medial length and 2.35 × wider than its total length.

Structure. Clypeus feebly convex overall, apically weakly depressed at middle. Apical clypeal teeth right angled, separated by shallow curved emargination. Head large, about as wide as the mesosoma in dorsal view, slightly broader above in frontal view and with thick temples in lateral view. Broad perifoveal area of vertex hardly existent and devoid of specialized sculpture and pilosity. Foveae close together in small depression at mid distance between ocelli and occipital carina, each one fringed behind by reduced number of setae. Occipital carina complete and shallowly obcordate medially in posterior view. Humeral angles small but sharp in dorsal view and right angled in frontal view. Pronotal carina shallowly emarginated shortly below humeral angle and almost straight downwards. Parapsidal line weak, but clearly defining parapsidal area. Parategula vulture-head shaped, tapering and careniform behind as seen from above. Posterior border of lateral axillary panel strongly curved, reaching axilla as tongue-like projection. Inner lamella of scutellar crest wide semicircle, upper opening of axillary fossa looks broadly oval. Lateral scutellar declivity strongly depressed. Lateral scutellar lamella lying below level of scutellar crest + lateral axillary panel. Inner opening of axillary fossa small and oval at bottom of depression. Metanotum strongly bent in lateral view, with short anterior horizontal strip, posterior face sloping about 80º, and with strong line of teeth between them. Metapleural sulcus effaced. Propodeal concavity sharply defined, almost carinate above, contact with tip of metanotum. Mid propodeal carina complete up to metapostnotal pit. Submedian propodeal carina thin, short, but clearly elevated. Submarginal carina smoothly continuous with propodeal valvulae, which are well developed and transluscent. T1 bent at level of its quite strong transverse carina, but not so sharply bent as in S. rejectoides Garcete-Barrett nor so rounded as in S. occipitalis . Very feeble indications of elevated medial line on feebly convex anterior declivity. Transverse carina smoothly curving backwards at level of spiracle. Longitudinal sulcus in form of shallow depression that dissipates behind.

Tegumental sculpture. Clypeus, head and mesosoma with sparse micropunctures, slightly denser at parapsidal areas. Densely macropunctate areas of head and mesosoma shinning, other areas moderately dull. Clypeus moderately dull, shagreened, medially with honeycomb-like coarse macropunctures which decrease in size laterally and rapidly in size and density downward. Frons, vertex and genae with deeper, almost honeycomb-like, macropunctures, dissipated on lower orbits and lower genae. Honeycomb-like macropunctation even deeper and stronger at pronotum and mesoscutum, dissipating at pronotal sides and parapsides. Scutellum medially with large, rounded and closely spaced macropunctures, with diagonal striae at lateral depression. Propodeum coarsely and densely alveolate on upper face, alveoles smaller and sparser on upper half of propodeal side and absent from lower half. Propodeal concavity smooth superolaterally (where it bears some few shallow and sparse coarse macropunctures) and dull and transversely microgranulated below. Metasoma subopaque, with moderately dense micropunctaion. Disc of T1 with moderately coarse macropunctures separated among them by intervals of about 0.5-1 diameter. T2 with thin and sparse macropunctures on basal four fifths and coarse and moderately dense macropunctures on apical fifth. Sculpture of T3 like that of apical portion of T2. S2 with thin and sparse macropuntures wich coarser than those on T2 and weakly coarser close to posterior margin. S3–S5 with similar sculpture, weakly coarser on each successive sternum. T6 with some scattered macropunctures. S6 without macropunctures.

Color pattern. Deep black integument with yellow markings as follows: small anterior line on basal depression and most of acetabular depression of mandible; small sublateral subapical clypeal spot; spot between antennal socket and eye; ventral line along scape; thin posterior pronotal border; anterior and posterior tegular marks; submedial mesonotal line extending forward from scutellar border and dying away far from reaching pronotal border; extremely tiny spot on parategula; mesoscutellum except for its anterior border and central line which fails to reach posterior border; thin line along scutellar crest; whole metanotum, including metanotal crest; broad submedial propodeal lines rapidly becoming thin at lower ridges and continued laterally along base of valvula; tiny mesepisternal precoxal spot; inner apical spot on fore femur; inner face of fore tibia; whole S1 posteriorly from middle of petiole; thin posterior margin of T1 and even thinner posterior margin of T2; feeble lateral and medial indications of extremely thin apical margin of S2. Testaceous are: apical suffusion of acetabular depression of mandible; ventral suffusion along pedicel and flagellum, increasingly broader and clearer apically; fore distitarsus; tiny dorsoapical suffusion on all femora; T1 basad of suspensory muscle insertion. Forewing membrane bight caramel-yellow, gradually fading into gray past pterostigma and getting darker there along costal border; venation light chestnut, grading into piceous along costal region.

Pilosity. Clypeus with thin and sparse whitish pile mixed with even sparser short downcurved whitish setae. Head and thoracic dorsum with short erect and sparse brownish yellow bristles, and some scarce pilosity of the same color which is moderately dense and perceptible just behind level of cephalic foveae and on axillary regions of scutellum and metanotum. Thoracic sides with downward (except on pronotal sides, where it points upward) semidecumbent to appressed whitish pile. Main area of mesepisternum with moderately long downcurved whitish setae. Sides and upper face of propodeum with a faintly yellowish white appressed pile and with some important erect thin pilosity of same color at limits of concavity behind and below. Propodeal concavity with dense whitish pile, pointing downward though not appressed, mixed with long straight setae of similar color and direction. Metasoma with almost imperceptible, very short and thin fulvous pilosity and extremely short, thin and sparse microsetae. Pilosity becoming whitish and longer ventraly.

Male unknown.

Material examined. Holotype: ♀, BRAZIL: Amazonas: Manaus, Reserva Florestal Adolpho Ducke, Grade do PPBio LO3 (NS4/NS5), 10-16-vii.2010 (A. Somavilla) [ INPA].

Distribution. Brazil: central Amazonia.

Etymology. The name of this species comes from the Guarani word tekora ′ãva (from the word roots teko = personality and ta ′ã [ra ′ã in the root form] = to imitate, together with the agentive suffix va), meaning imitator or impersonator, in direct allusion to the mimetic character of the color pattern of this wasp.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 5. Stenonartonia tekoraava sp. nov. Female holotype. 1. Habitus, dorsal view. 2. Habitus, lateral view. 3. Head, dorsal view. 4. Mesosoma, dorsolateral view. 5. Scutellum, metanotum, tegula and posterior half of mesoscutum, dorsolateral view.