Microplitis manilae Ashmead

Ranjith, A. P., Rajesh, K. M. & Nasser, M., 2015, Taxonomic studies on Oriental Microplitis Foerster (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Microgastrinae) with description of two new species from South India, Zootaxa 3963 (3), pp. 369-415 : 400

Microplitis manilae Ashmead

Microplitis manilae Ashmead 1904a ; 20. Holotype USNM.

Microplitis manilae Ashmead 1904b: 157 ; Wilkinson 1930: 25; Shenefelt 1973: 750; Austin & Dangerfield 1993; 1130; Gupta 2013; 444 (See Shenefelt 1973 for complete bibliography).

Female. Body length 2.7 mm.

Head: Circular in anterior view; lateral temples hidden behind eyes in anterior view; face and clypeus finely reticulate-punctate, densely setose; face slightly convex, with faint medial, longitudinal carina in dorsally, width of face (at widest) 0.5× width of head; inner margins of eyes straight to slightly emarginate near to antennal sockets; upper frons, vertex and temples finely punctate, with short sparse setae, upper frons with small pit below median ocellus; eyes setose; ocelli forming an obtuse triangle, POL 0.9× OOL; antenna moderately robust, longer than body, first flagellomere 2.5× as long as wide.

Mesosoma: Mesoscutum finely reticulate-punctate; notauli slightly impressed, crenulate, meeting posteriorly to form broad coarser longitudinally reticulate-punctate area, medial furrow slightly impressed; scutellar lunules broad, deep, divided by five–seven carinae; area anterior and lateral to scutellar lunules smooth; dorsal scutellum convex, faintly punctate medially, postero-lateral margin bordered by crenulate furrow; propodeum with median longitudinal carina surrounded by coarse rugosity; lateral pronotum with deep oblique crenulate furrow; mesopleuron mostly smooth and shining, dorsal epicnemal area and anterior margin finely punctate, with dense long fine pilosity; epicnemal furrow deep, crenulate, reaching anteriorly to margin of mesopleuron; precoxal groove crenulate; mesosternum finely punctate, pilose; hind coxa smooth, setose; tarsal claws small, simple.

Wings: Fore wing 2.7× as long as wide; pterostigma broad, 2.7× as long as wide; 1-R1 0.66× distance from pterostigma to SR1; 1-M very slightly curved; areolet quadrangular; 1-CU1 0.42× as long as 2-CU1; hind wing with 1-M slightly sinuate; 2-SC+R present; first submarginal cell 1.6× as long as wide.

Metasoma: T1 2× as long as wide, finely rugose-punctate in posterior half, smooth basally, parallel-sided except for slight constriction medially and slight narrowing apically, apical surface with smooth convex swelling; T2 smooth, with median field indicated by oblique grooves; T3–T7 each with one or two transverse rows of setae posteriorly, becoming denser laterally; hypopygium smooth, sparsely setose; ovipositor sheaths slightly curved, with sparse moderately long hairs and tuft of fused hairs apically.

Colour: Head, antennae (except brown scape), mesosoma and coxae black, T1 of metasoma black, laterotergites of T1 and T2 yellow brown, T2 with brown black median field indicated by indistinct oblique grooves, laterotergites yellowish brown, T3 with mixture of yellow, brown and black patches, rest tergites dark.

Male: Unknown.

Distribution. Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

Host. Spodoptera exempta Walker , Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) , Spodoptera frugiperda (Smith & Abott) , Spodoptera littoralis (Boisduval) and Spodoptera litura (Fab.) , Maruca vitrata (Fab.) .

Discussion. This species is closely related to M. ajmerensis in having the distinct medial longitudinal carina on propodeum, T1 narrowing posteriorly, T1 without medial longitudinal grove, propodeum coarsely rugose and scutellar lunules wide. It differs from M. ajmerensis in the following characters, mesoscutum with distinct medial furrow (in M. ajmerensis mesoscutum without medial furrow), median field on T2 faintly indicated (in M. ajmerensis T2 with distinct median field).

Comments. We could not examine the type specimens.