Aristelix phaenicura (Haliday, 1839)

Peris-Felipo, Francisco Javier, Ameri, Ali, Talebi, Ali Asghar & Belokobylskij, Sergey A., 2015, Review of the genus Aristelix Nixon, 1943 (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Alysiinae), with description of a new species from Iran and clarification of the status of Antrusa chrysogastra (Tobias, 1986), Journal of Hymenoptera Research 45, pp. 97-111 : 98-99

Aristelix phaenicura (Haliday, 1839)

Figs 2 , 3

Alysia (Dacnusa) phaenicura Haliday 1839: 6.

Alysia (Dacnusa) phoenicura : Haliday 1839: 27, 66, Dalla Torre 1898: 28 (mispelling: Haliday spelt the species as phaenicura in the description but as phoenicura in the index).

Dacnusa phaenicura : Nixon 1937: 49.

Dacnusa phoenicura : Marshall 1895: 463, 1897: 2, Szépligeti 1904: 195, Telenga 1935: 119.

Aristelix phaenicura : Nixon 1943: 27, Shenefelt 1974: 1030, Riegel 1982: 61, Tobias 1986: 269, Docavo and Tormos 1988: 162, Quicke et al. 1997: 26, Fischer 1999: 17, Belokobylskij et al. 2003: 357, Papp 2004: 133, 2005: 145, Yu et al. 2012.

Aristelix phoenicura : van Achterberg 1997: 65, Perepechayenko 2008: 365, Broad et al. 2012: 13.

Material examined.

1 female, Moldova, Tatareshty , steppe meadow in the forest, 6.vi.1967 (Tobias coll.) , 1 male, Russia, Sochi , Lazarevskoe, terraced slope, forest, 8-9.v.1975 (Tobias coll.)

Redescription.

Female. Body length 2.6 mm; fore wing length 2.6 mm.

Head in dorsal view 1.7 times as wide as median length, 1.45 times as wide as mesoscutum, vertex smooth, with small groove between occiput and ocelli. Eye in lateral view 1.5 times as high as wide and 1.2 times as wide as temple medially. POL 1.4 times OD; OOL 2.6 times OD. Face punctate, with scattered short setae, 1.4 times as wide as high; inner margins of eyes subparallel. Clypeus slightly curved ventrally, 1.9 times as wide as high. Mandible 4-dentate, not widened towards apex, 1.1 times as long as maximum width. Upper tooth of mandible small, distinctly shorter than lower tooth, pointed apically; second (median) tooth longest, wide basally and distinctly narrowed towards apex, pointed apically; third tooth small, about as long as first tooth, pointed, arising from base of second tooth and situated above it; lower tooth rather large, pointed apically, distinctly separated.

Antenna longer than body, 27-segmented. Scape twice as long as pedicel. First flagellar segment 3.2 times as long as its apical width, 1.25 times as long as first segment; second segment 2.5 times as long as its maximum width. Penultimate segment 2.2-2.3 times as long as wide; apical segment 3.0 times as long as maximum width.

Mesosoma 1.7 times as long as high (lateral view). Mesoscutum 0.95 times as long as its maximum width, with numerous scattered setae. Notauli shallow on posterior half of mesoscutum. Mesoscutal midpit present, distinctly elongate. Prescutellar depression smooth, with median carina but without lateral carinae. Precoxal suture present, weakly rugulose, reaching anterior and posterior margins of mesopleuron. Mesepimeral sulcus crenulate below. Lower part of mesopleuron and metapleuron with long whitish setae. Propodeum completely rugose-reticulate. Propodeal spiracle relatively small.

Wings. Length of fore wing 2.6 times its maximum width. Marginal cell short, ending before apex of wing, 3.7 times as long as its maximum width. Vein r arising distinctly before middle of pterostigma. Second submarginal cell closed, 2.5 times as long as its maximum width. Hind wing 5.3 times as long as maximum width.

Legs. Hind femur 3.5 times as long as maximum width. Hind tibia distinctly widened towards apex, 7.9 times as long as its maximum subapical width, 1.05 times as long as hind tarsus. First segment of hind tarsus (basitarsus) 1.25 times as long as second segment.

Metasoma compressed. First tergite striate, with scattered setae, weakly widened towards apex, twice as long as apical width. Second tergite mainly striate, smooth on apical sides. Tergites from third to sixth with more them one row of setae. Ovipositor weakly projecting beyond apex of metasoma, 0.85 times as long as first tergite, 0.5 times as long as hind femur.

Colour. Head, antenna, mesosoma, hind tibia, first segment of hind tarsus and ovipositor sheaths dark brown. Legs brownish yellow. First and second metasomal tergite almost black, following tergites yellowish brown. Wings hyaline. Pterostigma brown.

Male. Body length 2.7 mm; fore wing 2.7 mm. Antenna 29-segmented. First flagellar segment 2.2 times and second segment twice as long as their maximum width. Hind femur 3.8 times as long as maximum width. All coxae, hind femur and tibia dark brown. Otherwise similar to female.

Comparative diagnosis.

Differences between Aristelix phaenicura and A. persica sp. n. are described in the key below.

Distribution.

Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Moldova, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Ukraine, United Kingdom ( Yu et al. 2012).

Figures

Figure 2. Aristelix phaenicura (Haliday) (A, C-F female B male) A, B Habitus, lateral view C Mandible D Head, front view E Antenna F Head and mesosoma, lateral view.

Figure 3. Aristelix phaenicura (Haliday) (female) A Head and mesonotum, dorsal view B Propodeum and first metasomal tergite, dorsal view C Legs, metasoma and ovipositor, lateral view D Metasoma, dorsal view E First to third metasomal tergites, dorsal view F Fore and hind wings.