Apanteles gloriasihezarae Fernandez-Triana

Fernandez-Triana, Jose L., Whitfield, James B., Rodriguez, Josephine J., Smith, M. Alex, Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Hajibabaei, Mehrdad, Burns, John M., Solis, M. Alma, Brown, John, Cardinal, Sophie, Goulet, Henri & Hebert, Paul D. N., 2014, Review of Apantelessensu stricto (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) from Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, northwestern Costa Rica, with keys to all described species from Mesoamerica, ZooKeys 383, pp. 1-565 : 151-152

Apanteles gloriasihezarae Fernandez-Triana sp. n. Figs 97, 276

Apanteles Rodriguez13 ( Smith et al. 2006). Interim name provided by the authors.

Type locality.

COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, ACG, Sector Cacao, Sendero Arenales, 1080m, 10.92471, -85.46738.

Holotype.

♀ in CNC. Specimen labels: 1. COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, ACG, Sector Cacao, Sendero Arenales, 9.x.2003, 10.92471°N, -85.46738°W, 1080m, DHJPAR0002988.

Paratypes.

6 ♀, 1 ♂ (BMNH, CNC, NMNH). COSTA RICA, ACG database codes:, 03-SRNP-23277, 03-SRNP-23282.

Description.

Female. Body color: body mostly dark except for some sternites which may be pale. Antenna color: scape and/or pedicel pale, flagellum dark. Coxae color (pro-, meso-, metacoxa): pale, pale, partially pale/partially dark. Femora color (pro-, meso-, metafemur): pale, pale, mostly pale but with dark area dorsally. Tibiae color (pro-, meso-, metatibia): pale, pale, anteriorly pale/posteriorly dark. Tegula and humeral complex color: both pale. Pterostigma color: dark with pale spot at base. Fore wing veins color: partially pigmented (a few veins may be dark but most are pale). Antenna length/body length: antenna shorter than body (head to apex of metasoma), not extending beyond anterior 0.7 metasoma length. Body in lateral view: not distinctly flattened dorso–ventrally. Body length (head to apex of metasoma): 2.5-2.6 mm. Fore wing length: 2.5-2.6 mm. Ocular–ocellar line/posterior ocellus diameter: 2.6 or more. Interocellar distance/posterior ocellus diameter: 1.4-1.6. Antennal flagellomerus 2 length/width: 2.0-2.2. Antennal flagellomerus 14 length/width: 1.4-1.6. Length of flagellomerus 2/length of flagellomerus 14: 1.7-1.9. Tarsal claws: simple. Metafemur length/width: 2.5 or less. Metatibia inner spur length/metabasitarsus length: 0.4-0.5. Anteromesoscutum: mostly with shallow, sparse punctures (separated by more than 2.0 × its maximum diameter). Mesoscutellar disc: mostly smooth. Number of pits in scutoscutellar sulcus: 9 or 10. Maximum height of mesoscutellum lunules/maximum height of lateral face of mesoscutellum: 0.2-0.3. Propodeum areola: completely defined by carinae, including transverse carina extending to spiracle. Propodeum background sculpture: partly sculptured, especially on anterior 0.5. Mediotergite 1 length/width at posterior margin: 4.1 or more. Mediotergite 1 shape: clearly narrowing towards posterior margin. Mediotergite 1 sculpture: more or less fully sculptured with longitudinal striation. Mediotergite 2 width at posterior margin/length: 2.4-2.7. Mediotergite 2 sculpture: mostly smooth. Outer margin of hypopygium: inflexible (without a folded, transparent, semi–desclerotized area); with no pleats visible. Ovipositor thickness: anterior width at most 2.0 × posterior width (beyond ovipositor constriction). Ovipositor sheaths length/metatibial length: 0.4-0.5. Length of fore wing veins r/2RS: 1.4-1.6. Length of fore wing veins 2RS/2M: 0.8 or less. Length of fore wing veins 2M/(RS+M)b: 1.1-1.3. Pterostigma length/width: 3.1-3.5. Point of insertion of vein r in pterostigma: about half way point length of pterostigma. Angle of vein r with fore wing anterior margin: clearly outwards, inclined towards fore wing apex. Shape of junction of veins r and 2RS in fore wing: strongly angulated, sometimes with a knob.

Male. As in female but with darker hind legs (metacoxa, metafemur and most of metatibia fully dark brown).

Molecular data.

Sequences in BOLD: 12, barcode compliant sequences: 12.

Biology /ecology.

Gregarious (Fig. 276). Hosts: Crambidae , four species of Desmia and one inexplicable record from Hyalorista exuvialis .

Distribution.

Costa Rica, ACG.

Comments.

This species is very close to Apanteles robertoespinozai , and the morphological characters used in the key may appear to be a continuum of variation within one single species. However, they are unambiguously two species as based on their barcodes and their host records.

Etymology.

We dedicate this species to Gloria Sihezar in recognition of her diligent efforts for the ACG Programa de Parataxónomos and Estación Biológica San Gerardo.