Xorides similis (Benoit, 1952) Benoit, 1952

Varga, Oleksandr, 2019, Revision of theAfrotropical Xorides Latréille, 1809 (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae Xoridinae), with description of three new species, Zootaxa 4638 (1), pp. 57-80 : 58-60

Xorides similis (Benoit, 1952) , syn. n.

Material examined. Holotype. DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: female, Musée du Congo , Eala, v. 1935, leg. J. Ghesquiére (deposited in: RMCA) . Other material. Xorides similis holotype. DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: female, Musée du Congo, Mayumbe, Yanga, 1. xi. 1925 (deposited in: RMCA) .

Diagnosis. Xorides aciculatus is characterized by the combination of the following characters: body generally

black; vertex wrinkled; antenna subapically sharply angled at a single joint; face reticulate rugose; pronotum rugulose, smooth centrally; epomia present; epicnemial carina absent; propodeum with longitudinal and partly transverse carinae present, tooth-like projections long; fore and middle trochantelli without apical tooth; fore wing with vein cu-a basad of Rs&M by about 0.4 of its length; first metasomal tergite 1.6× as long as apical width, longitudinally wrinkled, with subapical transverse grooves, dorsal longitudinal carinae present on proximal 0.7; ovipositor about 2.0× length of hind tibia.

Re-description. Female. Holotype ( Fig. 1 ). Body length approximately 12.0 mm. Fore wing 8.5 mm.

Head ( Figs 1A, 1B, 1G ) depressed, temples narrowed and short behind eyes, covered with sparse short white setae; frons rugulose, with long carina-like projection between antennal sockets (reaching dorsal ocellus); length of the ocellar-ocular distance 0.8× maximum diameter of lateral ocellus; ocelli small, hind ocellus not extended behind eye; temples and vertex wrinkled; occipital carina complete; antenna subapically sharply angled at a single joint, with 23 flagellomeres, 18 th flagellomere with three long sensillae; face about 0.6× as long as wide, reticulate rugose, tentorial pits deep; malar space 1.25× basal width of mandible, with indistinct subocular groove; clypeus 0.4× as long as wide, weakly transversely wrinkled proximally and indistinctly rugulose distally, rounded apically.

Mesosoma ( Figs 1C, 1D, 1F ) almost glabrous; propleuron rugulose; pronotum swollen apically, rugulose, smooth centrally, epomia distinct; mesoscutum elongate, densely rugulo-punctate, with strong notauli; scutellum rugulo-punctate and postscutellum longitudinally wrinkled; mesopleuron rugulo-punctate anteroventrally, smooth posteriorly; speculum rugulose, epicnemial carina absent; sternaulus indistinct; metapleuron rugulo-punctate; propodeum rugulo-punctate, with longitudinal and partly transverse carinae present, tooth-like projections long; pleural and submetapleural carinae present; spiracles elongate, small.

Legs slender, hind femur 3.1× as long as wide; hind coxae smooth and sparsely punctate, fore and middle tibiae not swollen, narrower than femora; with V-shaped median ventral groove and subapical emargination; fore and middle trochantelli without apical tooth; tarsal claws simple.

Wings. Fore wing vein 2 rs-m long, about 1.2× distance between 2 rs-m and 2 m-cu; vein cu-a basad of Rs&M by about 0.4 of its length; hind wing with distance between distal abscissa of Cu 1 and M about as long as vein cu-a.

Metasoma ( Figs 1C, 1E, 1H ) strongly sculptured; first tergite 1.6× as long as apical width, longitudinally wrinkled, with subapical transverse grooves, dorsal longitudinal carinae present on basal 0.7; second tergite 0.8× as long as apical width, longitudinally wrinkled, with two large basolateral and third central triangular swellings delimited by basolateral and subapical transverse grooves; third tergite 0.6× as long as apical width, with the same sculpture as previous tergite, with only basolateral swellings; fourth tergite aciculate basally; the remaining tergites smooth; ovipositor about 2.0× length of hind tibia, with the apical teeth; ovipositor sheaths densely pubescent.

Colour. Body generally black except face laterally and temples centrally, antennal flagellomeres 10–14, tergites 5–7 apically and propodeal tooth-like projections apically yellow; clypeus reddish; legs generally brownish-black, fore and middle tibiae and tarsi with yellowish marks; pterostigma, three stripes on fore wing and metasoma apically brown; ovipositor sheaths brown, whitish centrally.

Male. Unknown.

Comments. Xorides similis morphologically similar to X. aciculatus , but has more abundant yellow coloration: face centrally and metasomal tergites 1–2 apicolaterally.

Distribution. Democratic Republic of Congo.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Xorides aciculatus (Benoit, 1952), holotype female (scale bar is 0.25 mm): A) frontal view of head; B) lateral view of head; C) dorsal view of propodeum and first metasomal tergite; D) lateral view of mesosoma; E) dorsal view of metasoma; F) fore wing; G) lateral view of apical flagellomeres; H) lateral view of the ovipositor apex; I) type label.