Heterospilus robbieae Marsh

Marsh, Paul M., Wild, Alexander L. & Whitfield, James B., 2013, The Doryctinae (Braconidae) of Costa Rica: genera and species of the tribe Heterospilini, ZooKeys 347, pp. 1-474 : 274-276

Heterospilus robbieae Marsh sp. n. Figure 187

Female.

Body size: 2.5 mm. Color: head dark brown; scape yellow with lateral longitudinal brown stripe, flagellum brown with apical white annulus, apical 5-7 flagellomeres brown; mesosoma dark brown, honey yellow along notauli; metasomal terga brown, apical terga usually lighter brown; wing veins including stigma brown; legs yellow, femora darker brown on apical half. Head: vertex granulate; frons weakly granulate; face weakly granulate or smooth; temple in dorsal view narrow, sloping behind eye, width less than 1/2 eye width; malar space greater than 1/4 eye height; ocell-ocular distance about 2.5 times diameter of lateral ocellus; 21-23 flagellomeres. Mesosoma: mesoscutal lobes granulate; notauli smooth, meeting at scutellum in triangular costate area; scutellum granulate; prescutellar furrow with 3-5 cross carinae; mesopleuron granulate; precoxal sulcus smooth, shorter than mesopleuron; venter weakly granulate or smooth; propodeum with basal median areas margined, granulate, basal median carina absent, areola not margined, areolar area areolate-rugose, lateral areas entirely rugose, propodeum with small but distinct tubercle near base of petiole above hind coxa. Wings: fore wing vein r shorter than vein 3RSa, vein 1cu-a beyond vein 1M; hind wing vein SC+R absent, vein M+CU shorter than vein 1M. Metasoma: first tergum longitudinally costate, length greater than apical width; second tergum longitudinally costate; anterior transverse groove present, straight; posterior transverse groove present; third tergum weakly costate or smooth basally, smooth apically; terga 4-7 smooth; ovipositor as long as metasomal terga 1 and 2 combined.

Holotype female.

Top label (white, printed) - Costa Rica: Alajuela [;] 5km. W San Ramon [;] 1200m, April 1997 [;] O. Castro & P. Hanson; second label (red, partially printed and hand written) - HOLOTYPE [;] Heterospilus [;] robbieae [;] P. Marsh. Deposited in ESUW.

Paratypes.

5 ♀♀, same data as holotype (ESUW). 1 ♀, Costa Rica: San Jose [;] San Antonio de Escazu [;] 1700m, September 1996 [;] P. Hanson & C. Flores [;] Malaise trap (ESUW). 1 ♀, COSTA RICA-San Jose [;] Zurqui de Moravia [;] 1600m, ii.1995 [;] P. Hanson (ESUW).

Comments.

The absence of hind wing vein SC+R, the bicolored mesoscutum and the strongly sloping temple behind the eye are distinctive for this species.

Etymology.

Named for a dear friend in Christ, Robbie Litzman.