Vipio quadrirugulosus (Enderlein)

Quicke, Donald L. J., Shaw, Scott R., Inayatullah, Mian & Butcher, Buntika A., 2020, The genus Vipio Latreille (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) in the Neotropical Region, ZooKeys 925, pp. 89-140 : 89

Vipio quadrirugulosus (Enderlein) Figures 21 , 22

Craspedolcus quadrirugulosus Enderlein, 1920: 94; Shenefelt, 1978: 1673; Isomecus quadrirugulosus : Quicke & van Achterberg, 1990: 253, 256; Vipio quadrirugulosus Yu et al., 2016.

Type material.

Holotype♀, Craspedolcus quadrirugulosus Enderlein, 1920, Ecuador, Bucay, (no additional data) (APSW).

Additional material examined.

Costa Rica: 1♀, Alajuela, Rio-Laguna de Arenal, 500 m, 14.iii.1988 (P. Hanson) (RMSEL); 1 ♀, Guanacaste, Hacind, La Pacifica, Canas, 3 km N, 24.i.1972 (G. Frankie) (TAMU). El Salvador: 1 ♀, Quezaltepeque, 20.vi.1961 (M.E. Irwin) (USNM). Guatamala: 1 ♀, Yepocopa, v.1948, (H.T. Dalmat) (USNM). Honduras: 1 ♀, Mt. Pine Ridge, 2-6.vii.1967 (Porter) (USNM). Mexico: 2 ♀, Chiapas, Pichucalco, 11.6 mi. SE, 3.viii.1980, (Schaffner, Weaver, Freidlander) (TAMU); 1 ♀, Chiapas, Huixtla, 20 mi. N, 3000', 1.vi.1969 (W.R.M. Mason) (TAMU); 1 ♀, Chiapas, Pichucalco, 9.5 mi. NW, 3.viii.1980 (TAMU); 1 ♀, Chiapas, Campostela Rio de Marcos, 42.7 mi. SW, 100', 1.i.1942, (R.R & H.E. Murray) (TAMU). 1 ♀, Chiapas, No 2154 (C.F. Baker), 1 ♀, Morelos, Cuernavaca, iii.1945 (N.L.H. Krauss) (USNM); 1 ♀, Tabasco, Cardina, 8.ix.1974, (G. Bohart & W. Hanson) (USU). Panama: 1 ♀, Canal Zone, Albrook Field, 25.x.1937 (USNM); 1 ♀, Panama City, Bella Vista, 7.viii.1924, (N. Banks) (USNM); 1 ♀, Canal Zone, Ft. Clayton, xii.1946 (N.L.H. Krauss) (USNM).

Diagnosis.

This species can be easily recognised from all other species by the black metasoma. Additionally, T II-V are densely striate longitudinally and the claws have a pointed basal lobe.

Description.

Females (N = 17) length of body 4.8-9.3 mm; of fore wing 5.3-8.3 mm, of ovipositor 2.3-2.6 mm, and of antenna 4.6-8.5 mm.

Head. Antenna 0.94-1.0 × body length; with 39-47 flagellomeres; first flagellomere 1.4 × longer than second, 2.5 × longer than wide; second flagellomere 2.0 × longer than wide; median flagellomeres 1.0-1.4 × longer than wide; antenna gradually tapering towards apex; terminal flagellomere acutely pointed apically; head transverse; clypeus rugulose; clypeal guard setae consist of one seta above each anterior-tentorial pit; face smooth and shiny or sparsely punctate; remainder of head smooth and shiny; HL/HH 0.76-0.78; HW/HH 0.75-0.78; FH/FW 0.6-0.62; EH/HH 0.63-0.67; EH/FW 0.99-1.1; EW/EH 0.72-0.74; ITD 1.35-1.7 × TOD; MS 0.32-0.35 × EH; LMC 0.3 × HH; third segment of maxillary palpus 4.0 × longer than wide.

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 1.5-1.64 × height; smooth and shiny, except dorsally crenulate pronotal furrow; pronotum usually carinate antero-laterally; notauli smooth; propodeum mostly smooth except slight rugose apically.

Wings. Fore wing: length of fore wing 1.0-1.1 × body length; PL/LRC 0.9-1.0; PW/PL 0.19-0.24; length of vein 3RSb 0.77-0.82 × combined length of r-rs and 3RSa; length of vein 1M 0.66-0.71 × length of (RS+M)a; 3RSa reaching wing margin 0.63-0.65 distance between apex of pterostigma and wing apex. Hind wing: basally uniformly setose; apex of vein C+SC+R with one or two basal hamules.

Legs. Claw with wide pointed basal lobe.

Metasoma. First tergite 1.2 × longer than posteriorly wide; raised median area oval, smooth or rugulose anteriorly with or without a complete median longitudinal carina; always with a median longitudinal carina and areolate-rugose posteriorly; surrounding area with transverse carinae; dorso-lateral carina lamelliform; T II-V longitudinally striate; T II 2.0-2.1 × wider than long, basal areas smooth and shiny oblique furrow strongly impressed, striate; T III 2.2-2.5 × wider than medially long, baso-lateral areas usually carinate-rugulose; T IV baso-lateral area rugulose; T V smooth and shiny, rarely striate; remainder of metasoma smooth and shiny; hypopygium short, ending at apex of metasoma; ovipositor 0.35-0.48 × body length.

Colour. Head black, except a yellowish red and/or yellowish stripe surrounding the eye and basal half mandible reddish yellow to yellow; antenna, maxillary and labial palpi, prosternum, propleuron, legs, and metasoma black. Wings brownish black, pterostigma black.

Distribution and seasonality.

Ranging from northern Mexico southwards to Ecuador (with records from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Panama). Specimens from Costa Rica were collected from January through March, June in El Salvador, May in Guatemala, July in Honduras, August through December in Panama, and from June through September in Mexico.

Remarks.

Vipio quadrirugulosus appears closely related to the Nearctic V. rugator because of presence of a raised median area on the face, a strongly sclerotised and densely longitudinally striate metasoma, short ovipositor, and the presence of a pointed basal lobe on the claw. However, the black metasoma and the presence of carinae on the raised median area in V. quadrirugulosus will readily separate this species from V. rugator in which the metasoma is yellow or reddish yellow and the raised median area of the first tergite is areolate and rugose and lacks such a carina.

Figures

Figure 21. Montaged light micrographs of Vipio quadrirugulosus. A Female habitus, lateral view B face C head, dorsal view D head and anterior mesosoma, lateral view E wings.

Figure 22. Montaged light micrographs of Vipio quadrirugulosus. A Mesosoma, dorsal view B mesosoma, lateral view C propodeum D metasomal tergite I, dorsal view E metasomal tergites II-VI.