Scelio tria Yoder & Masner, 2009

Yoder, Matthew, Polaszek, Andrew, Masner, Lubomir, Johnson, Norman & Valerio, Alejandro, 2009, Revision of Scelio pulchripennis - group species (Hymenoptera, Platygastroidea, Platygastridae), ZooKeys 20 (20), pp. 53-118 : 107-109

Scelio tria Yoder & Masner , sp. n.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:C5002E8B-B258-4264-9196-AF973157D1FB urn:lsid:biosci.ohio-state.edu:osuc_concepts:238049

Figs 109–114; Morphbank 27

Description. Female body length: 2.84–3.40 mm (n=8). Male body length: 2.62– 3.22 mm (n=20). Color of antenna in female: A1–A3 yellow to light brown, remaining brown. Color of head in female: black. Color of mesosoma in female: dark brown to black. Color of coxae in female: yellow to light brown. Color of leg past coxa in female: yellow to light brown. Color of metasoma in female: brown to dark brown.

Sculpture of lower frons in female: predominantly transverse to slightly arcuate striae. Sculpture of ventrolateral frons in female: minutely rugulose to obliterated, sculpture appearing slightly rough, without fine umbilicate sculpture. Form of malar sulcus in female: not percurrent, with some sections variously obliterated. Sculpture of upper frons of female: rugulose, above anterior ocellus smooth to slightly sculpture (shagreened). Sculpture of dorsal head between and posterior to lateral ocelli in female: predominantly obliterated, in some specimens with traces of rugulae medially. Mandible of female: upper tooth typically developed, lower tooth very short but clearly present, truncate to pointed.

Transverse pronotal carina in female: absent mesad, transition from dorsal shoul- der to anterior pronotum not sharply delimited but rather slightly curved, if appearing slightly present then either obliterated medially or composed of adjacent subpolygonal sculpture. Sculpture of medial mesoscutum in female: anteriorly with small patch of irregular transverse striae, remaining surface divided by one or two straight carinae along median, sculpture in and surrounding carinae slightly irregular, surface otherwise smooth. Sculpture of notaular course in female: one or two straight longitudinal carinae, surface immediately adjacent carinae irregularly rugulose. Sculpture of lateral mesoscutum in female: absent, or with obliterated patch that covers at least 1/2 of area. Sculpture of mesoscutellum in female: irregularly longitudinally striate, sparsely to moderately reticulate. Sculpture of lateral pronotum in female (excluding interstitial sculpture): with or without slight smooth patch below lateral epomial carina, otherwise loosely longitudinally carinate, with very few to no reticulate elements. Pronotal verricule in female: apparently absent, or base more or less unmodified, with tightly clumped clump of short to moderately elongate setae. Pronotal setal patch posteroventral to end of lateral epomial carina in female: dense (around 5 to many) small patch of appressed to slightly semi-decumbent setae. Sculpture of mesopleural depression in female: anterior 1/3 to 1/2 smooth, posterior longitudinally striate, with few to no reticulations. Pilosity of anteroventral metapleuron in female: dense patch of semidecumbent to erect setae. Dorsal surface of hind tibia in female: sparse, elongate, erect and slightly curved. Shape of hind femur in female: narrow, dorsal and ventral surfaces relatively symmetrical. Basal pigmented spot of fore wing in female: percurrent from submarginal vein to posterior margin, striplike (a band), divided only by hyaline course of M+Cu. Basal fascia of fore wing in female: subrectangular, strip-like, percur- rent from anterior to posterior margin. Apical fascia of fore wing in female: broad, hyaline, percurrent from anterior to posterior fore wing margin, apex of fore wing past fascia only slightly darker.

Sculpture of dorsal T 1 in female: longitudinally striate, with few to no transverse divisions or reticulations, interstices smooth or with very slight irregular microsculpture. Sculpture of dorsal T 2 in female: fine parallel to slightly reticulate striae with minutely colliculate to transverse sculpture within interstices. Sculpture of anterior T2 through anterior depression in female: interrupted with by a smooth strip, majority of sculpture

Figures Ι09–ΙΙ4 .67 Scelio tria sp. n. (OSUC 235074). Ι09 Habitus, dorsal view ΙΙ0 Habitus, lateral view ΙΙΙ Mesosoma, dorsal view ΙΙ2 Mesosoma, lateral view ΙΙ3 Head, anterior view ΙΙ4 Mesonotum, dorsal view. Abbrieviation: car, carinae. Scale bars in millimeters.

not contiguous with that of posterior T2. Sculpture of dorsal T 3 in female: fine parallel to irregular longitudinal striae, with reticulation absent to moderately present, but not forming dense reticulations. Medial sculpture of T 4 in female: obliterated to smooth. Medial sculpture of T 5 in female: obliterated to smooth. Sculpture of T2–T5 curved transition from dorsal to lateral terga in female: obliterated to smooth. Profile of female metasoma in lateral view: dorsal and ventral surfaces more or less evenly convex. Sculpture of lateral T2–T 6 in female: with some fine striae ventrally, particularly medially, dorsally smooth. Pilosity of laterotergites in female: present on T1–T2.

Diagnosis. Scelio tria differs from all non-metallic species by the three, sometimes paired, straight longitudinal carinae of the mesoscutum (Fig. 114).

Etymology. Latin for three, in reference to the three longitudinal markings on the mesoscutum.

Link to distribution map. [http://osuc.biosci.ohio-state.edu/HymOnline/maplarge.html?id=238049]

Material examined. Holotype female: INDIA: Delhi Union Terr., Indian Agricultural Research Institute ( IARI), New Delhi, 300 m, 11.VII.1990, J. Heraty, OSUC 235083 (deposited in CNCI) . Paratypes: INDIA: 8 females, 22 males, 1 unknown sex, OSUC 238937 ( BMNH) ; OSUC 211543–211548 , 211563–211564 , 211590– 211597 , 234704–234710 , 234712–234713 , 235074–235075 , 235084 ( CNCI) ; UCRC ENT 110190 ( UCRC); OSUC 253002 ( USNM) .

Comments. The sculpture of the dorsal metasoma is particularly fine, with obliterated areas relatively large, and transverse elements relatively reduced.