Alphomelon carolinacanoae Fernandez-Triana & Shimbori, 2023

Fernandez-Triana, Jose L., Shimbori, Eduardo M., Whitfield, James B., Penteado-Dias, Angelica M., Shaw, Scott R., Boudreault, Caroline, Sones, Jayme, Perez, Kate, Brown, Allison, Manjunath, Ramya, Burns, John M., Hebert, P. D. N., Smith, M. Alex, Hallwachs, Winnifred & Janzen, Daniel H., 2023, A revision of the parasitoid wasp genus Alphomelon Mason with the description of 30 new species (Hymenoptera, Braconidae), ZooKeys 1175, pp. 5-162 : 5

Alphomelon carolinacanoae Fernandez-Triana & Shimbori sp. nov.

Figs 16A-E , 93B

Type material.

Holotype. Costa Rica • Female, CNC; Guanacaste, Area de Conservación Guanacaste, Sector Cacao, Sendero Nayo, 10°55'28.06"N, 85°28'10.31"W, 1090m; 22.X.2013; ex. Carystoides escalantei ; coll. Harry Ramirez; Voucher code: DHJPAR0054776; Host voucher code: 13-SRNP-36219.

Distribution.

Costa Rica (ACG).

Biology.

Solitary, reared from Carystoides escalantei .

DNA barcoding.

BINBOLD:ACE5969.

Etymology.

Named in honor of Sra. Carolina Cano in honor of her decades of teamwork in the ACG parataxonomist team.

Diagnostic description.

White patch on gena: extending to occiput but not to clypeus. Tegula/humeral complex color: white/yellow. Mesonotum color: mostly dark brown to black. Metasoma color: mostly black or dark brown. Tarsal claws spines: 1. Pterostigma shape: comparatively more elongate, its length ≥ 3.0 × its central height and more triangular with its two lower margins more or less straight. T1 sculpture: strongly sculptured on at least apical half or more. T1 central ridge: strongly marked by two raised carinae and strong costulae centrally. T2 sculpture: entirely to mostly strongly sculptured. Ovipositor sheaths length: longer than first segment of metatarsus. Body length: 4.3 mm. Fore wing length: 4.5 mm.

Notes.

The single specimen studied had all the anterior and middle legs with one spine on every tarsal claw; one hind leg was missing, but the one present had a different number of spines on its tarsal claws (one claw had two spines whereas the second claw had one spine). Here we consider the species as having tarsal claws with one spine and thus, the species should be run through the first half of couplet 22; if other specimens become available in the future this species may need to be run differently in the key.

Figures

Figure 16. Alphomelon carolinacanoae Fernandez-Triana & Shimbori holotype female DHJPAR 0054776 A habitus, lateral B head, frontal C fore wing D metasoma, dorsal E head and mesosoma, dorsal.

Figure 93. Parasite cocoons A Alphomelon calixtomoragai 08 - SRNP- 23629 - DHJ 448941 B Alphomelon carolinacanoae 06 - SRNP- 45140 - DHJ 414816.