Encarsia insignis, Schmidt & Polaszek, 2007

Schmidt, Stefan & Polaszek, Andrew, 2007, The Australian species of Encarsia Förster (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea: Aphelinidae), parasitoids of whiteflies (Hemiptera, Sternorrhyncha, Aleyrodidae) and armoured scale insects (Hemiptera, Coccoidea: Diaspididae), Journal of Natural History 41 (33 - 36), pp. 2099-2265 : 2172-2173

40. Encarsia insignis n. sp.

( Figures 131, 132 )

Description (holotype)

Female. Colour: head and mesosoma yellow except pronotum partly and anterior margin of mesoscutal midlobe narrowly brown. Gaster yellow, T1 and T4–T5 with very faint and indistinct brown bands and also laterally very faintly brown. Antenna yellow, apical segment slightly brown. Fore wing hyaline. Legs yellow.

Morphology: antennal formula 1,1,4,2. Pedicel slightly longer than F1. F1 about 1.7 times as long as its maximum width, distinctly shorter than F2 (0.7), and F3 (0.7). Midlobe of mesoscutum with eight setae, arranged symmetrically, side lobes with two setae each. Scutellar sensilla widely separated (approximately seven times the maximum width of a sensillum). Distance between anterior pair of scutellar setae greater than between posterior pair. Fore wing 2.3 times as long as width of disc. Marginal fringe 0.26 times as long as width of disc. Submarginal vein with two setae, marginal vein anteriorly with seven setae. Basal cell with one to three setae. Tarsal formula 5-5-5. Apical spur of midtibia slightly longer than half the length of the corresponding basitarsus (0.67). Tergites laterally with the following numbers of setae: T1: 0, T2: 1, T3: 2, T4: 2, T5: 3–4, T6: 2, T7 with four setae. Ovipositor subequal in length to midtibia (1.04). Third valvula 0.38 times as long as second valvifer.

Male. Unknown.

Species group placement. E. inaron group.

Distribution. Australia: Western Australia.

Host. Aleyrodidae : Bemisia afer group.

Material examined

Western Australia: Holotype: ♀, Purnululu National Park, 8 May 2000 (S. and O. Schmidt), ex Bemisia afer group on Terminalia platyphylla F. Muell. (Combretaceae) (ANIC).

Figures

Figures 131, 132. Encarsia insignis n. sp., holotype female. (131) Mesosoma and gaster. (132) Fore wing.