Xorides nigrithorax Varga, 2019

Varga, Oleksandr, 2019, Revision of theAfrotropical Xorides Latréille, 1809 (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae Xoridinae), with description of three new species, Zootaxa 4638 (1), pp. 57-80 : 71-73

Xorides nigrithorax Varga , sp. n.

(Fig. 8)

Material examined. Holotype. CAMEROON: female, Nkoemvon, viii–ix.1980, leg. D. Jackson (deposited in: BMNH) . Paratypes. male, idem., 16.iii–4.v.1980; male, idem., 1980 (deposited in: BMNH) . Other material. GHA- NA: female, Gold Coast, Aburi, 1912–1913, leg. W. H. Patterson (deposited in: BMNH).

Diagnosis. Xorides nigrithorax sp. n. is characterized by the combination of the following characters: body generally brownish-black; vertex sparsely punctate; antenna subapically sharply angled at a single joint; face reticulate rugose; pronotum densely punctate, with foveolate groove anteriorly; epomia absent; epicnemial carina absent; propodeum with traces of dorsal longitudinal carinae, tooth-like projections almost indistinct; fore and middle trochantelli without apical tooth; fore wing with vein cu-a basad of Rs&M by about 0.3 of its length; first metasomal tergite 1.6× as long as apical width, densely punctate, with transverse grooves, carinae absent; ovipositor about 3.9× length of hind tibia.

Description. Female. Holotype (Fig. 8). Body length approximately 10.0 mm. Fore wing 7.0 mm.

Head (Figs 8B, 8C, 8D, 8H) depressed, temples short and parallel behind eyes, covered with white setae; frons densely punctate, with short carina-like projection between antennal sockets (widened apically); length of the ocellar-ocular distance 1.3× maximum diameter of lateral ocellus; ocelli small, hind ocellus not extended behind eye; temples transversely wrinkled; vertex sparsely punctate; occipital carina complete, somewhat emarginated dorsally; antenna subapically sharply angled at a single joint, with 23 flagellomeres, flagellomeres 17–18 with three long sensillae; face about 0.7× as long as wide, reticulate rugose, tentorial pits deep; malar space 1.2× basal width of mandible, with strongly depressed subocular groove; clypeus 0.8× as long as wide, rugulose, rounded apically.

Mesosoma (Figs 8B, 8D, 8E) densely pubescent; propleuron densely punctate dorsally, smooth ventrally; pronotum swollen apically, densely punctate, with foveolate groove anteriorly, epomia absent; mesoscutum elongate, densely punctate, with weak notauli; scutellum and postscutellum densely punctate; mesopleuron densely punctate except speculum; epicnemial carina absent; sternaulus indistinct; metapleuron densely punctate; propodeum densely punctate, with traces of dorsal longitudinal carinae, tooth-like projections almost indistinct; pleural and submetapleural carinae present; spiracles elongate.

Legs slender, hind femur 3.8× as long as wide, hind coxa densely 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; hind tibia with strong spines; tarsal claws simple.

Wings. Fore wing vein 2 rs-m short, 0.5× distance between 2 rs-m and 2 m-cu; vein cu-a basad of Rs&M by about 0.3 of its length; hind wing with distance between distal abscissa of Cu 1 and M weakly shorter, than vein cu-a.

Colour. Head, mesosoma and first three tergites black; the remaining parts of body brownish, except marks on face, frons, and temples, flagellomeres 9–15 whitish; pterostigma and three stripes on fore wing brown; ovipositor sheaths brown, yellowish subapically.

Male. Generally resembles female (Fig. 8G), but whitish coloration on face more abundant; antenna not angled, with long erect setae ( Fig. 10I ), entirely brownish; tibiae without emarginations; propodeum with dorsal longitudinal carinae more distinct, reaching weakly defined apical transverse carina; metasomal tergites 2–5 the same structure as the second tergite of female, but swellings more distinct.

Variation. First metasomal tergite can be orange on proximal 0.5.

Distribution. Cameroon, Ghana.

Etymology. This species is named after the black mesosoma.

Figures

FIGURE 10. Xorides rufofacialis Varga, sp. n., holotype female (scale bar is 0.25 mm):A) frontal view of head; B) lateral view of habitus; C) dorsal view of head and mesosoma; D) dorsolateral view of propodeum and metasomal tergites 1–2; E) lateral view of head and mesosoma; F) lateral view of hind tibia; G) lateral view of apical flagellomeres.