Meteorus itatiaiensis, Almeida, Luis Felipe Ventura De & Dias, Angélica Maria Penteado, 2015

Almeida, Luis Felipe Ventura De & Dias, Angélica Maria Penteado, 2015, Five new species of Meteorus Haliday (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Euphorinae) from Brazil, Zootaxa 4057 (2), pp. 231-247 : 236-239

Meteorus itatiaiensis n. sp.

Figs 15–21 , 39

Diagnosis. Occipital carina incomplete; mandibles twisted; face maximum width 1.03–1.09× minimum width; head height 1.70–1.84× eye height; notauli distinctive ( Fig. 18 ); propodeum and T1 yellow; T1 with small rounded pits dorsally ( Fig. 20 ); ventral borders of T1 touching for a short distance; ovipositor 1.93–2.00× T1 length.

Body color. Antenna black, except scape yellow on outer surface; head orange, except area between ocelli black ( Fig. 16 ); propleuron and pronotum yellow; mesonotum yellowish-orange with black mesonotal lobes; mesopleuron with dorsal half yellow, ventral half and precoxal sulcus black ( Fig. 15 ); metanotum light brown medially, becoming dark brown laterally; metapleuron and propodeum yellow; fore and mid legs yellow, except tibia and tarsus brown; hind legs yellow with tibia and tarsus brown, except apical tip of tibia and telotarsus dark brown; metasoma yellow ( Fig. 21 ); tegula black, humeral complex whitish ( Fig. 18 ); wings slightly infuscate. Body length. 3.53 mm.

Head. Antenna with 29 flagellomeres; flagellomere length/width ratio as follows: F1 = 4.20, F2 = 3.40, F3 = 3.00, F27 = 2.00, F28 = 2.12, F29 = 2.50; head width 1.35× head height; head height 1.70× eye height; face maximum width 1.06× its minimum width ( Fig. 17 ); face minimum width 1.57× clypeus width; malar space length 0.90× mandible width basally; temple length 0.76× eye length in dorsal view; ocellar-ocular distance 1.57× ocellar diameter ( Fig. 16 ); occipital carina incomplete; mandibles twisted; frons smooth and polished; face smooth with a rugulose area medially; clypeus finely rugulose.

Mesosoma . Notauli distinctive, rugose ( Fig. 18 ); mesonotal lobes well defined; scutellar furrow with five carinae; pronotum smooth except medially carinate; propleuron smooth; central lobe of mesoscutum smooth; mesopleuron, excluding the precoxal sulcus, puncticulate; precoxal sulcus long, wide and rugose; metapleuron rugulose; propodeum rugose, without longitudinal and transversal carinae; median depression on propodeum slightly present ( Fig. 19 ).

Legs. Tarsal claw simple; hind coxa dorsally rugose, ventrally smooth.

Wings. Fore wing: length 3.43 mm; vein r 0.91× length of vein 3 Rsa; vein 3 Rsa 0.69× length of vein r-m; vein m-cu of fore wing interstitial. Hind wing: vein 1M equal length of vein cu-a; vein 1M 1.06× length of vein r-m.

Metasoma. Dorsope absent, T1 with small rounded pits ( Fig. 20 ); ventral borders of first tergite touching for a short distance distally; ovipositor 1.93× first tergite length; T1 costate, with costae almost parallel; remaining tergites smooth; ovipositor slightly thickened basally and sinuous.

Female variation. Body length 3.12–3.58 mm; antenna with 28–29 flagellomeres; head width 1.20–1.35× head height; head height 1.7–1.84× eye height; face maximum width 1.03–1.09× its minimum width; face minimum width 1.35–1.57× clypeus width; malar space length 0.88–1.00× mandible width basally; temple length 0.63–0.76× eye length in dorsal view; ocellar-ocular distance 1.57–1.58× ocellar diameter; scutellar furrow with three carinae; face smooth; metapleuron finely rugulose. Fore wing: length 2.91–3.43 mm; vein r 0.75–0.91× length of vein 3 Rsa; vein 3 Rsa 0.66–0.75× length of vein r-m. Hind wing: vein 1M 0.86–1.00× length of vein cu-a; vein 1M 0.75–1.00× length of vein r-m; ventral borders of first tergite almost touching distally; ovipositor 1.93–2.00× first tergite length; ovipositor thickened basally and sinuous; T1 costate, with costae slightly convergent; hind leg with tarsus and tibia dark brown; pro and mesothoracic legs with telotarsus dark brown; pedicel light brown on outer surface; head yellowish-orange; precoxal sulcus dark brown.

Comments. Meteorus itatiaiensis and M. fallacavus Aguirre, Almeida & Shaw are the only species on the Neotropical region known to have “pseudodorsopes”, both have a pair of cavities on the first tergite that resemble dorsopes, but unlike other species of Meteorus that always have the ventral borders of T1 widely separated when the dorsopes are present ( Huddleston 1980; Aguirre et al. 2011), these species have the ventral borders touching for a short distance apically. In the key of Aguirre et al. (2015) M. itatiaiensis will key to couplet 5 also near M. fallacavus , however this species can be easily distinguished since M. itatiaiensis displays an incomplete occipital carina, head height 1.70–1.84× eye height, face maximum width 1.03–1.09× its minimum width, malar space length 0.88–1.00× mandible width basally, propodeum and T1 yellow and mesonotal lobes black.

Holotype. 1 Female, DCBU 54245 Itatiaia, RJ, Brasil, PARNA de Itatiaia, S 22 21' 36.9" W 44 43' 56", Armadilha Malaise 0 5, 01.ii.2012, R. F. Monteiro col.

Paratypes. 11 females, DCBU 13207 Sao Luiz do Paraitinga, SP, Brasil, PESM-Nucleo Santa Virginia, Armadilha Malaise V, S 23 19' 16.9" W 45 5' 46.6", 21.i.2011, Perioto, N. W. e eq. col.; DCBU 0 0 708 Ribeirao Grande, SP, Brasil, Parque Estadual de Intervales, S 24 16' 23.6" W 48 25' 21.8", Armadilha Malaise V, 22.i.2010, N. W. Perioto e eq.; DCBU 0 6572 Ribeirao Grande, SP, Brasil, Parque Estadual de Intervales, Armadilha Malaise I, S 24 16' 28" W 48 25' 14.8", 23.vii.2010, N. W. Perioto e eq.; DCBU 79009 Itamonte, MG, Brasil, PARNA de Itatiaia, S 22 22' 22.5" W 44 45' 19.7", Armadilha Malaise 0 3, 19.vii.2011, R. F. Monteiro col. DCBU 79005 Itamonte, MG, Brasil, PARNA de Itatiaia, S 22 22' 22.5" W 44 45' 19.7", Armadilha Malaise 0 3, 12.vii.2012, R. F. Monteiro col.; DCBU 0 3443 Ribeirao Grande, SP, Brasil, Parque Estadual de Intervales, S 24 16' 28" W 48 25' 14.8", Armadilha Malaise I, 22.ii.2010, N. W. Perioto e eq.; DCBU 13208 Sao Luiz do Paraitinga, SP, Brasil, PESM-Nucleo Santa Virginia, Armadilha Malaise V, S 23 19' 16.9" W 45 5' 46.6", 21.i.2011, Perioto, N. W. e eq. col.; DCBU 0 1973 Ribeirao Grande, SP, Brasil, Parque Estadual de Intervales, S 24 16' 23.6" W 48 25' 21.8", Armadilha Malaise V, 21.ii.2011, N. W. Perioto e eq.; DCBU 0 5218 Ribeirao Grande, SP, Brasil, Parque Estadual de Intervales, S 24 16' 28.8" W 48 25' 20.6", Armadilha Malaise IV, 23.vii.2010, N. W. Perioto e eq.; DCBU 0 1974 Ribeirao Grande, SP, Brasil, Parque Estadual de Intervales, S 24 16' 23.6" W 48 25' 21.8", Armadilha Malaise V, 21.ii.2011, N. W. Perioto e eq.; DCBU 0 0 432 Ribeirao Grande, SP, Brasil, Parque Estadual de Intervales, S 24 16' 28" W 48 25' 14.8", Armadilha Malaise I, 22.i.2010, N. W. Perioto e eq.

Distribution. Meteorus itatiaiensis occurs in Ribeirão Grande and São Luiz do Paraitinga in the state of São Paulo, Itamonte in the state of Minas Gerais, and Itatiaia in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil ( Fig. 39 ).

Etymology. This species is named after the city of Itatiaia where the holotype was collected.

Figures

FIGURES 15 – 21 Meteorus itatiaiensis n. sp., female 15. Lateral habitus. 16. Head, dorsal view. 17. Head, frontal view. 18. Mesonotum, dorsal view. 19. Propodeum, dorso-lateral view. 20. T 1, dorso-lateral view, arrow showing the “ pseudodorsope ”. 21. Metasoma, dorsal view.

FIGURES 37 – 44 Geographical distribution of Meteorus spp. in Brazil. 37. Meteorus atlanticus n. sp. 38. Meteorus ferruginosus n. sp. 39. Meteorus itatiaiensis n. sp. 40. Meteorus monoceros n. sp. 41. Meteorus strigatus n. sp. 42. Meteorus jerodi. 43. Meteorus laphygmae 44. Meteorus megalops.