Pristaulacus lindae Turrisi, 2000

Published, First, 2007, Revision of the Palaearctic species of Pristaulacus Kieffer, 1900 (Hymenoptera: Aulacidae), Zootaxa 1433, pp. 1-76 : 52-53

Pristaulacus lindae Turrisi, 2000

( Figs. 16, 36, 56, 76, 89, 114)

Pristaulacus lindae Turrisi, 2000: 260 (♀).

Pristaulacus lindae: Smith, 2001: 289 .

Material examined. ITALY: holotype ♀ labelled “ Sicilia, Catania, F. Alcantara, Calatabiano, m 60 ( Catania ), 4.VI.1999 G.F. Turrisi leg./ Pristaulacus lindae Turrisi sp. nov., ♀, 1999, Holotypus ” ( DBAC) ; paratypes: same data of holotype, 5♂ G.F. Turrisi leg. ( DBAC, MCSN) . Additional material: same locality of type specimens, 13.VI.2000, 4♂ ( DBAC, OLML, USNM) ; 6.VI.2001, 1♂ ( DBAC) ; Mount Etna, Mount Serra m 500 ( Viagrande , Catania ), 2.VIII.2005, 1♀ S. Bella leg. ( DBAC) .

Records from literature. Turrisi (2000).

Type locality. “ Sicilia, Catania, Fiume Alcantara, Calatabiano , m 60” ( Turrisi 2000) .

Notes on type material. The type material consists of the holotype (♀) and 5 paratypes (♂) .

Redescription. ♀ (holotype). Length (excluding ovipositor): 11.2 mm; fore wing length: 8.2 mm.

Colour black, except: median part of mandible, dark reddish; maxillo-labial complex blackish brown with palpi lighter; occipital carina dark brown; coxae, trochanters and femora blackish; fore tibia and tarsus red orange; mid and hind tibiae and tarsi dark brown; wings hyaline with veins and stigma brown; fore wing with a subrectangular light brown spot below stigma, weakly defined, 0.5x as wide as stigma length, reaching middle of SM2, and with two small and poorly-defined brown spots, one between SB and SD 1, the other in distal part of D2; metasoma red orange, with sternites darker and petiole extensively blackish; valvula 3 of ovipositor dark brown. Setae: whitish, except extensively yellow gold on mandible.

Head ( Figs. 16, 36) from above, 1.2x wider than long, polished and shiny; occipital margin straight; temple, from above, moderately developed, 0.8x as long as eye length, moderately convergent posteriorly and regularly rounded; occipital carina wide, lamelliform, as wide as diameter of an ocellus; POL:OOL= 1.3; ocellar area 2.3x wider than long; frons and vertex with moderately coarse or fine, superficial, and scattered punctures (distance between punctures more than 2x diameter of a puncture); clypeus with moderately coarse, deep, and dense punctures; temple and vertex with coarse, deep, and dense punctures; malar area striolate punctate with moderately coarse, deep, and dense punctures; occipital area polished; mandible polished and shiny with coarse and deep punctures on base and in middle; antenna 1.1x longer than fore wing length; A3 6.2x longer than wide; A4 12.2x longer than wide, and 1.7x longer than A3; A5 11.2x longer than wide, and 1.4x longer than A3; following antennomeres progressively shorter, the apical one dorsoventrally compressed, with apex rounded, 2.8x longer than wide. Setae: semierect or recumbent, moderately long, and dense on clypeus, on malar area and on lateroinferior parts of frons; erect, long, and moderately dense on remaining parts; semierect, moderately long, and dense on A1; setae length of temple 1x diameter of an ocellus.

Mesosoma ( Fig. 56) coarsely sculptured; pronotum areolate rugose, with a few coarse and deep punctures, each lateroventral margin with two well-developed teeth, fore one larger than hind one; propleuron polished and shiny, with irregular and superficial punctures, fine and moderately dense on proximal half (distance between punctures about 1.5x diameter of a puncture), moderately coarse and dense on distal half (distance between punctures 0.5–1.5x diameter of a puncture); prescutum triangular, not concave, irregularly carinulate rugulose; mesoscutum transverse carinate, except anterolateral corners, areolate rugose, and hind margin, scrobiculate, with anterior margin, in lateral view, regularly rounded ( Fig. 56); notaulus moderately deep and wide; scutellum irregularly transverse carinate on anterior half, areolate rugose on posterior half; mesepimeron transverse carinate; mesepisternum areolate rugose, with upper third punctate rugose; metanotum longitudinally carinate, irregularly carinate in middle; propodeum areolate rugose, with base longitudinally carinate; ventral parts of mesosoma extensively polished, with lateral parts rugulose foveolate, and median part transverse carinate; fore wing with vein 2-rs+m short; fore coxa polished, shiny, with fine, superficial, and scattered punctures, moderately coarse, and deep along outer side; mid coxa shiny, with moderately coarse, deep, and moderately dense punctures, and outer side irregularly rugulose punctate; hind coxa ( Fig. 76) shiny, with proximal half of dorsal surface transverse carinulate, distal half polished, base of ventral surface transverse striolate, lateral parts rugulose punctate, and remaining parts polished, with fine to coarse, superficial to deep, and moderately dense punctures (distance between punctures about 2x diameter of a puncture); trochanters shiny, regularly punctate, with fine, moderately deep, and scattered punctures on fore trochanter, moderately coarse, deep, and dense on mid and hind trochanters; dorsal surface of femora dull, with coarse, deep, and dense punctures; ventral surface of femora shiny, with fine, superficial, and very scattered punctures; inner spur of mid and hind tibiae slightly longer than outer spur; hind basitarsus 12.5x longer than wide, and 1.1x longer than tarsomeres 2–5; claw with four well-developed teeth. Setae: erect or semierect, short, and scattered on dorsal surface, longer and denser on lateral and ventral parts, erect, long, and scattered on hind surface of propodeum; erect and moderately long and dense on propleuron, with setae length 0.5–0.6x fore pretarsus length; semierect and moderately long and dense on coxae and trochanters, erect on dorsal surface of hind coxa; recumbent, very short, and dense on dorsal surface of femora, erect, moderately long, and very scattered on ventral surface.

Metasoma moderately compressed laterally, pyriform in lateral view; petiole elongate, slender, 3.5x longer than wide; segments 1 and 2 polished and shiny; following segments with very fine, and moderately dense punctures, except most of lateral margins of T3–T7 and S3–S6; S7 with moderately coarse, moderately deep, and dense punctures; T8 shiny, with fine, superficial, and scattered punctures; ovipositor 1.54x longer than fore wing length; valvula 3 of ovipositor with apex acute. Setae: segments 1 and 2 glabrous; recumbent, short, and scattered to moderately dense on median part of T3–T7 and S3–S6; recumbent, short, and moderately dense on S7; erect, short, and scattered on T8.

ď. Length: 11.0 mm; fore wing length: 7.6 mm. Colour, structure, and setae like ♀, except: antenna length 0.9x fore wing length; A3 3.6x longer than wide; A4 5.8x longer than wide, and 1.7x longer than A3; A5 5.4x longer than wide, and 1.5x longer than A3; hind basitarsus 11.7x longer than wide; petiole 4.0x longer than wide; tergites and median part of sternites of metasomal segments, with recumbent, very short, and dense setae, except segments 1 and 2; genital capsule ( Fig. 89) with apex of paramere obliquely truncate, cuspis moderately wide and curved, digitus with lower apex wide and moderately long, and upper apex moderately narrow and long.

Intraspecific variation. Examined: 2♀, 10♂. Length: 9.3–11.2 mm (♀); 9.7–11.0 mm (♂); fore wing length: 7.0–8.2 (♀); 7.0– 7.6 mm (♂); ovipositor 1.54–1.57x longer than fore wing length. The rugosity of hind coxa is moderately variable and may be more or less extended and developed, but always weak in all specimens than those in the similar P. compressus .

Distribution. Sicily ( Italy).

Remarks. This species resembles P. compressus for the following features: brown, lamelliform occipital carina; two teeth on the lateroventral margin of the pronotum; and four teeth on the inner margin of claw. However, it can be distinguished from the latter species by several characters of colour pattern and morphology: tarsi blackish brown; metasoma more extensively red orange; shape of the mesosoma; sculpture of the prescutum (carinulate rugulose); longer petiole; longer ovipositor (about 1.5x longer than fore wing length). Males of these two species also are distinguished by several characters of the genital capsule ( Figs. 84, 89).

Biology. Type specimens, as well as additional specimens from type locality, were collected on leaves of Morus alba L. ( Moraceae ), very close to the river, probably to search for sugary substances ( Turrisi 2000); the specimen from Etna (Mount Serra) was collected in an oak wood.