Leptodrepana shriekae Dadelahi & Shaw

Dadelahi, Samin D., Shaw, Scott R., Aguirre, Helmuth & Almeida, Luis Felipe V. de, 2018, A taxonomic study of Costa Rican Leptodrepana with the description of twenty-four new species (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Cheloninae), ZooKeys 750, pp. 59-130 : 96-99

Leptodrepana shriekae Dadelahi & Shaw sp. n. Figs 92-96

Diagnosis.

Body small, less than 2.5 mm; the carapace apex has two protruding points or tubercles that are visible in both dorsal and posterior view; the apex is shiny and weakly punctate; the mesopleuron is medially shiny-impunctate and it is deeply foveate at the precoxal sulcus. Body mottled brownish orange in color with a very characteristic median orange square patch on mesoscutum.

Holotype female.

BL 2.13 mm; FWL 1.67 mm; CL 0.96 mm; CW 0.32 mm; CL/CW 3.

Description.

Color. Head blackish brown, mandibles mostly yellowish brown but blackish brown basally and apically; palpi yellowish white; antennae dark brown with scape, pedicel and first flagellomere (basal) yellowish white; mesosoma mostly brownish black except mesoscutum with median yellowish brown square patch and anterior scutellar depression surrounding scutellar disc yellowish brown; legs yellow with faint basal white band on tibia; wings lightly pigmented with darker area below stigma covering apical half of 1st submarginal cell and anterior portion of 2nd submarginal cell; yellowish brown venation; carapace brownish black.

Head. HW 0.5 mm; HL 0.53 mm; HW/HL 0.94; face, vertex and ocellar triangle rugulose-punctate, genae weakly so; frons depressed, weakly punctate, and median carina lacking; clypeus punctate and apical margin rounded; occipital carina complete.

Mesosoma. Pronotum foveate antero-laterally to weakly rugose at propleural margin; propleuron weakly areolate-rugose; mesoscutum medially with irregular parallel pitted grooves between notauli difficult to distinguish and appears areolate-rugose; notauli narrow and visible anteriorly; median and lateral lobes rugulose-punctate; scutellar sulcus with six well-defined depressions, all longer than wide; scutellar disc punc tate; mesopleuron anteriorly rugose, medially impunctate and shiny deeply foveate at precoxal sulcus and impunctate to weakly punctate postero-ventrally; propodeum coarsely areolate-rugose with distinct transverse carina raised into small and roughly equal medial and lateral flanges.

Metasoma. Carapace areolate-rugose basally graduating to shiny and weakly punctate at apex; but weak; in posterior view, apex terminating in two points shallowly arched between; in dorsal view, apex terminates in two points visible below rounded carapace dorsum; in lateral view, apex terminates in sloping point below midline; ventral cavity almost reaching apex.

Variation of paratype females. Color: clypeus orange; color pattern more pronounced with yellowish cream tibial band and orange square patch on mesoscutum in stark contrast with surrounding areas; median carina weak medially; points at apex of carapace deeply arched between; HW 0.58-0.7 mm; HL 0.48-0.56 mm; HW/HL 1.2-1.3; BL 1.9-2.3 mm; FWL 1.5-1.9 mm; CL 0.9-1.1 mm; CW 0.32 mm; CL/CW 2.8-3.4.

Paratype males. Similar to females except clypeus yellow/orange; antennae broken in male examined; flagellum yellowish white; face sometimes with orange markings below antennae; mesoscutum without median orange square patch coarsely punctate medially; anterior scutellar depression surrounding scutellar disc same color as disc; ventral cavity distal carapace apex by at least twice the distance in females; HW 0.58 mm; HL 0.5 mm; HW/HL 1.2; BL 2.1 mm; FWL broken; CL 0.92 mm; CW 0.36 mm; CL/CW 2.56.

Material examined.

Holotype female: SAN JOSE, San Antonio de Escazu, 1300 m, i–ii.1989 (W. Eberhard) [UWIM]. Paratype females: 3♀, GUANACASTE, P. N. Santa Rosa, Bosque Humedo mature evergreen dry forest in clearing fully isolated part of the day, 300 m, 28.xii.1985-18.i.1986 (I. Gauld & D. Janzen); 8♀, 1♂, same data except 29. xi– 20.xii.1986.

Remarks.

Leptodrepana shriekae may be distinguished from other Costa Rican species by the following combination of characters: the body is small, less than 2.5 mm; the carapace apex has two protruding points or tubercles that are visible in both dorsal and posterior view; the apex is shiny and weakly punctate; the mesopleuron is medially shiny-impunctate and it is deeply foveate at the precoxal sulcus. Leptodrepana shriekae is an interesting mottled brownish orange in color with a very characteristic median orange square patch on mesoscutum.

Etymology.

This species name is a patronym for Erika L. Smith, affectionately known as Shriek since the age of fourteen, in appreciation for all the commiseration she has provided to SDD over the years.