Psyllaephagus phelys, Noyes, 2023

Noyes, John Stuart, 2023, ENCYRTIDAE OF COSTA RICA (HYMENOPTERA: CHALCIDOIDEA), 4 Subfamily Encyrtinae: tribes Arrhenophagini, Habrolepidini, Cerapterocerini, Cheiloneurini, Trechnitini, Cercobelini, Polaszekiini, Protyndarichoidini, Gahaniellini and Syrphophagini (part), mainly primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids of Coccoidea and Psylloidea (Hemiptera), Taxonomic Monographs on Neotropical Hymenoptera (Oxford, England) 2 (11), pp. 1-921 : 605-607

Psyllaephagus phelys sp.nov.

(Figs 1613-1619)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.7mm): antenna (Fig. 1613) with scape mostly dark brown; flagellum dark brown; tegula dark brown; mid femur brown; hind tibia pale orange with an incomplete, brown, subbasal ring; head (Fig. 1614) about 2.5X as wide as frontovertex and about 3.0X as wide as mouth opening; ocelli forming an angle or about 110°, with posterior ocellus slightly closer to eye than to occipital margin; frontovertex with piliferous punctures shallow, distinct and clearly larger than eye facet, separated by at least about their own diameters; antenna (Fig. 1613) with scape nearly 4X as long as broad and slightly shorter than minimum width of frontovertex; antenna with pedicel longer than F1, funicle with F1-F4 a little longer than broad, F5 quadrate, F6 transverse, linear sensilla on all funicle segments, segments of clava subequal in length, but becoming shorter towards apex which is rounded; clypeal margin hardly convex and hardly protuberant; mandible with one tooth and a broad truncation; mesoscutum about as shiny as scutellum (Fig. 1615); scutellum convex and with slightly deeper and more longitudinally elongate sculpture than mesoscutum; fore wing (Fig. 1616) about 2.2X as long as broad; costal cell dorsally with only one line of setae; marginal vein (Fig. 1618) about 2X as long as broad; linea clava partially closed; gaster without a distinct, strongly reticulate anteromedian area on Gt3; ovipositor about 1.5X as long as mid tibia and slightly exserted, the exserted part about 0.3X as long as mid tibial spur; second valvifer with about 16-18 subapical setae. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.65mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.61mm ( CPD) .

Head with occiput and frontovertex dull, metallic dark blue with some purple reflections; scrobal area with a dull purple sheen, slightly more shiny metallic blue-green immediately above interantennal prominence and dark blue between toruli and along mouth margin; temple and gena dull purple mixed with some dark blue; setae on frontovertex, interantennal prominence and gena translucent and pale, brown, almost silvery in some lights; antenna (Fig. 1613) with radicle dark brown; scape mostly dark brown with a slightly purple and dark blue sheen, extreme apex pale orange; pedicel dark brown with extreme apex and venter dusky pale orange; flagellum dark brown; thorax generally dark brown to black; pronotum with copper and dark green reflections; mesoscutum slightly dull, metallic dark blue with some violet reflections; tegula dark brown with a slight coppery purple sheen; axilla dark purple-brown and slightly brassy; scutellum about as shiny as mesoscutum, metallic dark blue and dark green mixed with some violet, slightly coppery on side anteriorly; metanotum with a slight coppery and brassy lustre; mesopleuron with a slight metallic dark green and brassy lustre, with some copper posteriorly; all coxae dark brown with a slight violet, dark blue and green sheen; all femora dark brown with apices pale orange; fore tibia pale orange with an incomplete, brown, subbasal ring, tarsus pale orange, apical tarsomere brown; mid tibia pale orange with an incomplete, brown, subbasal ring, spur and tarsus pale orange, distal tarsomeres slightly dusky, terminal tarsomere brown; hind tibia pale orange with an incomplete, brown, subbasal ring, tarsus pale orange, distal tarsomeres slightly dusky, terminal tarsomere brown; wings (Fig. 1613) hyaline; propodeum dark purple-brown, generally with a slight copper and dark green sheen, side with a metallic blue-green sheen and with a few translucent, pale brown setae outside spiracle; gaster dark brown, dorsally mainly with a coppery purple sheen, Gt1 with a strong metallic green sheen, syntergum mixed metallic dark blue and green, side largely metallic green, blue-green blue and copper, venter mainly with a coppery purple sheen with some purple, green, blue and brassy reflections; gonostylus dark brown

Head (Fig. 1614) about 2.5X as wide as frontovertex and about 3.0X as wide as mouth opening, in profile about 1.9X as high as deep, evenly curved from occipital margin to top of scrobes and then fairly straight to mouth margin, with interantennal prominence not protuberant; occipital margin more or less acute, not carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 110°; frontovertex with slightly irregular, moderately deep, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size subequal to eye facet, piliferous punctures shallow, distinct and clearly larger than eye facet, separated by at least about their own diameters; frontovertex with 8 or 9 pairs of setae in front of anterior ocellus, a line of sparse setae along inner eye margin continued along lower eye margin to gena; temple and gena with longitudinally elongate, polygonally reticulate sculpture; eye reaching occipital margin, with conspicuous, pale setae, each much longer than diameter of facet; scrobes shallow, narrowly ∩-shaped, meeting, weakly margined dorsally and laterally, with similar polygonally reticulate sculpture to frontovertex; interantennal prominence weak, narrowly rounded dorsally, with similar polygonally reticulate sculpture to frontovertex; antenna as in Fig. 1613; scape slightly broadened and flattened, widest above middle, nearly 4X as long as broad; all funicle segments longer than broad, larger and broader distad, F6 subquadrate; linear sensilla present on all segments; clava slightly shorter than F4-F6 combined, apex appearing rounded but sensory area slightly enlarged and extending a little way along ventral surface; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin virtually straight; mandible with one tooth and a broad truncation. Relative measurements: HW 96, HH 78, FV 39, POL 20.5, OOL 3, OCL 4, AOL 10, EL 54.5, EW 43, MS 23, SL 35.5, SW 9.

Thorax (Fig. 1615) in dorsal view with pronotum short, largely hidden by head, dorsally with slightly irregular, moderately deep, polygonally reticulate sculpture that is about as deep as sculpture on frontovertex; mesoscutum with polygonally reticulate sculpture that is similar to that on frontovertex; axilla with similar sculpture to mesoscutum but slightly shallower and a little more transversely elongate; scutellum with generally slightly deeper, more longitudinally elongate sculpture than that on mesoscutum; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.6X as broad as long; scutellum about as long as broad; fore wing with venation and distribution of setae as in Figs 1616, 1618, costal cell dorsally with only one line of submarginal setae; propodeum medially about 0.14X as long as scutellum, with some shallow, irregular, reticulate sculpture. Relative measurements: FWL 98, FWW 44; HWL 65, HWW 19.5.

Gaster with hypopygium (Fig. 1617) reaching about 0.8X along gaster; Gt3 without strongly reticulate anteromedian area; syntergum about 0.7X as long as mid tibia, with apex weakly angular; ovipositor (Fig. 1619) slightly exserted, the exserted part about 0.3X as long as mid tibial spur or a little less than 0.1X mid tibia; second valvifer with about 16-18 subapical setae. Relative measurements: OL 63.5, GL 12.5 [MT 40].

Variation. Only holotype examined.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Puntarenas, Monteverde , 1760m, v.1988 (B.V. Brown) . Holotype in CNC .

COMMENTS. Psyllaephagus phelys is very similar to gyces and can be separated reliably using the characters given in the key. It is also somewhat similar to korus but lacks the protuberant clypeus, has linear sensilla on F1, slightly deeper and more longitudinally elongate sculpture on the scutellum than that on mesoscutum, more slender apically rounded gonostylus and the sculpture on frontovertex is less regular than in korus . See also comments under kallichoa (p. 592).

The Mexican species Psyllaephagus trjapitzini Myartseva & Martinez Ramírez (2003) is very close to phelys and could possibly run to phelys in the key if the gaster lacks a distinct, strongly reticulate anteromedian area on Gt3. It differs from phelys in having OCL more than 2X OOL, F1 subequal to F2 and lacking linear sensilla, the mesoscutum very shiny contrasting strongly with the much duller scutellum and the mid femur as dark as the hind femur. In phelys, OCL is about 1.3X OOL, F1 is clearly smaller than F2, all funicle segments have linear sensilla, the mesoscutum and scutellum are similar in colouration and the mid femur much paler brown than the hind femur.