Aleyroctonus miasmus Lahey & Polaszek, 2019

Lahey, Zachary, Masner, Lubomir, Johnson, Norman F. & Polaszek, Andrew, 2019, Revision of Aleyroctonus Masner & Huggert (Hymenoptera, Platygastridae, Sceliotrachelinae), Journal of Hymenoptera Research 73, pp. 73-93 : 73

Aleyroctonus miasmus Lahey & Polaszek sp. nov.

Figures 28-31

Description.

Body length of female: 0.96-1.06 mm (n=3). Color of radicle: yellow. Color of mesosoma: brown. Color of metasoma: yellow. Length of LOL: equal to or greater than 2 OD. Length of POL: greater than 2 OD. Genal carina: absent. Length of clava: not longer than A3-A7. Length of A4: approximately as long as A3. Shape of mesoscutum in lateral view: convex. Path of notauli: strongly converging posteriorly. Shape of notaulus: same width throughout. Posterior mesoscutellar sulcus: continuous. Setation of posterior mesoscutellar sulcus: sparse. Sculpture of posterior mesoscutellar sulcus: foveolate. Rim of posterior mesoscutellar sulcus: present. Sculpture of metanotal trough: costate. Prespecular sulcus: present. Sculpture of prespecular sulcus: costate. Setation of metapleuron: dense. Length of metabasitarsus: shorter than tarsomeres 2-5. Setation of anterolateral pits on T2: thin. Rs of fore wing: spectral. M of fore wing: spectral. Rs+M of fore wing: spectral.

Diagnosis.

The strongly converging notauli, complete posterior mesoscutellar sulcus, and light coloration of the metasoma make A. miasmus a charismatic species that in unlikely to be confused with A. pilatus or A. stanslyi .

Etymology.

The epithet was inspired by the miasma theory of disease, particularly the beaked masks worn by plague doctors during the Black Death of the 12th Century. The epithet is treated as a noun.

Link to distribution map.

[https://hol.osu.edu/map-large.html?id=466911]

Material examined.

Holotype, female: AUSTRALIA: QLD, rainforest, Q-23, 17°28'14"S 146°03'48"E, Ella Bay National Park , 21.IX-23.IX.2004, yellow pan trap, L. Masner, OSUC 697908 (deposited in ANIC) . Paratypes: AUSTRALIA: 2 females, OSUC 697906-697907 (CNCI) .

Comments.

No significant variation in size was observed in the material examined. The host of A. miamus is unknown.

Figures

Figures 28 - 31. Aleyroctonus miasmus, female holotype (OSUC 697908) 28 head, mesosoma, metasoma, dorsal view 29 head, mesosoma, metasoma, lateral view 30 head, anterior view 31 mesosoma, posterodorsal view. Scale bars: in millimeters.