Therophilus tricolor (Szépligeti)

Stevens, Nicholas B., Austin, Andrew D. & Jennings, John T., 2011, Diversity, distribution and taxonomy of the Australian agathidine genera Camptothlipsis Enderlein, Lytopylus Foerster and Therophilus Wesmael (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Agathidinae), Zootaxa 2887 (1), pp. 1-49 : 41-42

Therophilus tricolor (Szépligeti)

( Figs 7D , 15C , 21A )

Agathiella tricolor Szépligeti, 1905: 52 [examined]. Holotype HNHM ♀; Type locality: Sydney, New South Wales. Turner, 1918a: 109 & 110 [key, notes]; Parrot, 1953: 199 [catalogue].

Agathis tricoloralis (Szépligeti) : Shenefelt, 1970b: 363 [catalogue, generic transfer; replacement name for Agathiella tricolor which is preoccupied by Agathis tricolor Gerstaecker ].

Bassus tricolor (Szépligeti) ; Papp 2004: 186 [catalogue, generic transfer]; Yu et al., 2005 [catalogue, noted Bassus tricolor (Szépligeti) was a senior secondary homonym of B. tricolor (Granger) ].

Therophilus tricolor (Szépligeti) ; Stevens et al., 2010: 22 [catalogue, generic transfer].

Diagnosis. Broad pointed elevation between antennae; labial palpomere 3 highly reduced so appears absent; notauli absent; sternalus relatively long and scrobiculate; propodeum with faint rugose-granulate sculpturing; T1 and T2 with faint granulate-rugose sculpturing; ovipositor length greater than body length; with BROW colour pattern.

Description (female). Body length 3.6 mm; ovipositor 5.0 mm; head orange except for dark brown to black dorsally; antenna dark brown; mesosoma orange anteriorly, with posterior sclerites, metanotum, propodeum, metapleuron, mesepimeron and posterior two-thirds of mesopleuron ranging from dark brown to black; fore leg orange, claws darker; mid leg mottled in appearance, mostly dark brown but distal femur and medial tibia pale; hind leg mostly dark brown with pale bands on distal femur and basal tibia; median T1 mostly black except thin white bands on all margins; median T2 mostly black with white anterior and antero-lateral margins; T3 mostly black with white incursions antero-laterally; laterotergites of T1 and T2 white; S1–S2 mostly white except small dark patch on medial S1; remainder of metasoma black to dark brown.

Head width 0.8 mm, length 0.5 mm, height 0.6 mm; eye width 0.2 mm, length 0.3 mm, height 0.4 mm; head triangular in anterior view; inter-orbital distance 0.5 mm; median ocellus diameter 0.05 mm; distance between lateral ocelli and median ocellus 0.07 mm; distance between lateral ocelli 0.1 mm; broad pointed elevation between antennae; ante-ocular pit present; both antennae incomplete; clypeus width 0.2 mm, height 0.1 mm; malar space height 0.15 mm; distance from ventral eye margin to latero-ventral mouth margin 0.2 mm; labial palpomere 3 highly reduced, can appear absent under light microscopy, length less than 0.2x labial palpomere 4 length; labial palpomere 2 equal in length to labial palpomere 4 (0.05 mm); posterior margin of head, when viewed dorsally, slightly excavated (incursion 0.03 mm); posterior genal margin distinctly carinate with no expansion ventro-posteriorly.

Mesosomal width 0.6 mm, length 1.5 mm, height 0.9 mm; pilosity mostly 0.04–0.08 mm in length and sparse, particularly dorsally, except for distinct dense setal field on metapleuron and mesepimeron where setae are longer (0.1–0.15 mm) and thicker; antescutal depression not distinct, anterior margin carinate with setal fringe; subpronope not distinct, bordered posteriorly by pair of faint carinae, posterior carina extending close to anterior margin of pronotum; notauli absent; scutellar sulcus scrobiculate, divided into 6 pits by 5 longitudinal carina, medial carina of similar prominence as lateral carinae, anterior margin convex, posterior margin concave, anterior wall sloped, particularly medially, posterior wall steeper, nearly vertical; propodeal surface faintly rugose-granulate; propodeal spiracle small and round (diameter 0.02 mm); suture line between metapleuron and propodeum delineated by scrobiculate groove; hind coxal cavities closed to metasomal foramen by hind coxal bridge (minimum width 0.03 mm) with carinate margins; sternalus distinctly scrobiculate and relatively straight, horizontal posteriorly, with slight upward curvature anteriorly; metapleural with setal field, surface smooth except for punctation associated with setae.

Legs with basal lobe of all claws large and quadrate; mid tibia with 4 apical and 4 preapical spines; preapical spines on anterior surface in distal half of tibia; hind tibia with 4 apical and 5 preapical spines; preapical spines clumped just basal to apical spines.

Both fore and hind wings lightly infuscate to clear; fore wing maximum width 0.9 mm, length 3.3 mm; cell 1- Rs petiolate and triangular, reduced in size, maximum distance across cell (0.04 mm) marginally greater than width of petiolate vein (0.02 mm); petiole of cell 0.08 mm long; basal one-third of M+Cu clear to lightly pigmented; hind wing maximum width 0.6 mm, length 2.6 mm.

Metasomal length 1.7 mm, maximum width 0.6 mm; dorsal surfaces appearing mostly smooth but faint granulate-rugose sculpturing on median T1 and T2; T1 length 0.6 mm; anterior width 0.2 mm, posterior width (maximum) 0.3 mm; T2 with medial transverse groove; T2–T3 boundary marked by shallow groove.

Male. Unknown.

Holotype: ♀, ‘ Australia, Biró’ ‘ N.S. Wales, Sydney’ ( HNHM).

Comments. Therophilus tricolor exhibits a similar BROW colour pattern to T. rugosus , but has only faint rugose sculpturing on the propodeum compared with the extensive sculpturing of T. rugosus . This small species has an extremely long ovipositor, and highly reduced labial palpomere 3 that can appear absent under light microscopy. No other material could be reliably associated with this species. It is known only from the type locality, Sydney, New South Wales ( Fig. 21A ).

The holotype is in relatively good condition except both antennae are incomplete with 16 flagellomeres on the left side and 22 on the right.

Figures

FIGURE 7. Anterior head of Camptothlipsis and Therophilus spp.: A, C. oliveri; B, T. malignus (holotype); C, T. martialis; D, T. tricolor; E, T. stephensae; F, undescribed Therophilus species. Scale lines = 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 15. Habitus of Lyptopylus and Therophilus spp.: A & B, T. stephensae: A, female lateral habitus; B, female laterodorsal habitus; C, female lateral habitus T. tricolor (holotype); D, female lateral habitus L. rufipes. Scale lines = 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 21. Distribution maps of described Therophilus species: A, T. rugosus ●; T. tricolor o; B, T. unimaculatus ●; T. xanthopsis o.