Embidobia jatayu Veenakumari, 2024

Veenakumari, Kamalanathan, Kolla, Sreedevi, Sushil, Satya Nand, Samuel, Duleep Kumar, Khan, Farmanur Rahman & Mohanraj, Prashanth, 2024, Embidobia Ashmead (Hymenoptera, Platygastroidea, Scelionidae) of the Indian region with descriptions of new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 970, pp. 61-101 : 79-81

Embidobia jatayu Veenakumari sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:49C3210D-28D1-4AA4-8084-2B971BC2FCE0

Figs 2G , 9

Diagnosis

Embidobia jatayu sp. nov. is close to E. sankirna sp. nov. but differs from it in having a metascutellum longitudinally costate and submarginalis of the fore wing not broken in front of marginalis. Whereas in E. sankirna metascutellum is anteriorly foveate and posteriorly with depressions; the submarginalis of fore wing is broken in front of marginalis.

Etymology

This species is named after Jatayu, the king of vultures in the Hindu epic Ramayana, who died attempting to rescue Sita (wife of the hero Rama) from Ravana, her abductor. The interantennal process resembles the beak of a bird of prey. The name is treated as a noun in apposition.

Material examined

Holotype INDIA – Karnataka • ♀; Chikkaballapur, Nandi Hills ; 13°37′02″ N, 77°41′34″ E; 1448 m; 18 Jun. 2014; YPT; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5028 .

Paratypes INDIA – Karnataka • 1 ♀; Bengaluru, Hebbal ; 13°02′08″ N, 77°35′49″ E; 906 m; 20 Jan. 2015; YPT; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5029 • 1 ♀; Bengaluru, Jarakabande Kaval ; 13°05′41″ N, 77°32′35″ E; 921 m; 12 Sep. 2014; YPT; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5030 • 1 ♀; Bengaluru, Hesaraghatta ; 13°08′01″ N 77°29′27″E; 859 m; 26 Mar. 2014; YPT; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5031 • 1 ♂; same locality as for preceding; 7 Jul. 2014; YPT; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5032 • 1 ♀; Bengaluru, Attur ; 13°05′48″ N, 77°33′59″ E; 936 m; 1 Aug. 2015; YPT; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5033 • 1 ♀; Udupi, Brahmavara ; 13°25′51″ N, 74°44′43″ E; 36 m; 28 May 2014; YPT; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5034 . – Tamil Nadu • 1 ♀; Chidambaram, Annamalai University , Agriculture College ; 11°23′30″ N, 79°42′48″ E; 21 m; 1 Jul. 2016; YPT; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5035 • 1 ♀; same locality as for preceding; 2 Jul. 2016; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5036 • 1 ♀; Theni, Periyakulam, Horticulture College and Research Institute (HCRI) ; 10°07′41″ N, 77°35′59″ E; 297 m; 19 Aug. 2013; SN; NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5037 .

Description

MEASUREMENTS. Female body length = 1.01–1.18 mm (n = 9); male body length = 1.7 mm (n = 1).

Female

COLOUR. Head and mesosoma black-brown; radicle, A1–A7 yellow-brown, remaining antennomeres black-brown; T1 yellow-brown, T2–T3 brown with yellow patches laterally, remaining tergites red-brown; legs yellow-brown.

HEAD. Head: 1.2 × as wide as high, 1.3 × as high as long. IOS: 0.6 × head width, 1.2× eye length. OOL: 0.8× width of median ocellus. Compound eye: ovate (L:W = 15.5: 11.3). Sculpture of frons: lower frons medially smooth with uneven longitudinal carinae on either side; several short transverse carinae present dorsal to central keel; upper frons with several semicircular carinae. Central keel: 0.5 × head height. Sculpture of gena: predominantly smooth with long setae. Facial and malar striae: prominent. Sculpture of vertex: imbricate. Interantennal process: elongate, with V-shaped carina in posterior half.

MESOSOMA. L:W of mesoscutum: 17.5: 27.5. Sculpture of mesoscutum: weakly rugose, with a smooth patch posteromedially. Mesoscutal humeral sulcus: with a furrow. Mesoscutal suprahumeral sulcus: indicated as a furrow. Scutoscutellar sulcus: foveate laterally. L:W of mesoscutellum: 10.0: 19.0. Sculpture of mesoscutellum: smooth. Posterior mesoscutellar sulcus: foveate. Metascutellum when viewed dorsally: visible. Sculpture of metascutellum: longitudinally costate and with foveae between costae. Posterior margin of metascutellum: evenly rounded. Sculpture of lateral propodeal area: anteriorly smooth, posteriorly costate with foveae in between. Sculpture of lateral pronotal area: dorsally imbricate, ventrally smooth. Netrion: present, smooth, linear. Netrion sulcus: costate. Pronotal suprahumeral sulcus: not foveate. Pronotal cervical sulcus: indicated as a furrow. Prespecular sulcus: with transverse foveae. Speculum of mesopleuron: transversely carinate. Episternal sulcus: with transverse foveae. Postacetabular sulcus: foveate. Mesepimeral sulcus: with transverse foveae. Mesepimeral area: smooth. Mesopleural carina: present. Sculpture of femoral depression: smooth. Mesopleural pit: present. Sculpture of metapleuron: smooth. Metapleural sulcus: with transverse foveae. Paracoxal sulcus: indicated by a furrow. Metapleural epicoxal sulcus: indicated as transverse carinae and a furrow. Anteroventral extension of metapleuron: 2 × as long as wide. L:W of fore wing: 71.9: 27.3. Infuscate patch on fore wing: present as a longitudinal patch medially. Ratio of length of m: pm: stg: 4.9: 21.1: 8.8. Metasomal depression: longitudinally costate except for smooth areas laterally.

METASOMA. L:W of metasoma: 35.0: 31.5. Sculpture of T1: basal foveae present; longitudinally costate except for a narrow smooth area posteriorly and a setose reticulate patch laterally. Sculpture of T2: basal foveae present; entirely longitudinally striate except for smooth area posteriorly and setose reticulate patch laterally. Sculpture of T3: medially areolate, laterally and posteriorly smooth with setae. Length of T1:T2:T3: 6.0: 12.5:11.0.

Male

Similar to female except for length of antennomeres.

Figures

Fig. 2. Wings. A. Embidobia agastya Veenakumari sp. nov., holotype, ♀ (NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5001). B. E. barbarika Veenakumari sp. nov., holotype, ♀ (NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5063). C. E. brittanica Girault, 1917, lectotype, ♀ (USNM, Type No. 2060). D. E. dooranetra Veenakumari sp. nov., holotype, ♀ (NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5103). E. E. gauriputra Veenakumari sp. nov. holotype, ♀ (NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5076). F. E. hrdaya Veenakumari sp. nov., holotype, ♀ (NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5114). G. E. jatayu sp. nov., holotype, ♀ (NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5028). H. E. mahabali Veenakumari sp. nov. holotype, ♀ (NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5038).

Fig. 9. Embidobia jatayuVeenakumari sp. nov., holotype, ♀ (NIM, ICAR-NBAIR P5028). A–B. Habitus dorsal view. C. Head and pleuron. D. Frons. E. Antenna.