Protyndarichoides hermippe, 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 : 537-538

Protyndarichoides hermippe sp.nov.

(Figs 1346-1349)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 0.9mm): flagellum pale orange-brown; thorax dark brown to black with a weak to moderate metallic sheen; fore coxa pale brown, mid coxa dark brown, hind coxa pale orange; gaster dorsally brown, sides and venter pale orange; gonostylus brown; antenna (Fig. 1346) with clava 3-segmented; head slightly higher than broad; F1 subequal to F3; linear sensilla on F1-F6; mesoscutum (Fig. 1349) with slightly obliquely elongate, polygonally reticulate sculpture that is a little shallower than sculpture on scutellum; scutellum with polygonally reticulate sculpture, apical one-third and side smooth; propodeum with 2 or 3 brown setae outside spiracle. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length 0.87mm ( CPD) .

Head mainly dark brown; area between occipital margin and posterior ocelli with a coppery-purple sheen, area between posterior ocelli and top of scrobes generally with a weak blue and purple sheen, scrobal area with a weak purple sheen, temple and gena with a coppery sheen; frontovertex, gena and interantennal prominence with moderately conspicuous, long brown setae; radicle pale orange with side dark brown; scape pale orange; pedicel pale orange, slightly dusky dorsally; flagellum pale orange-brown; maxillary palpus very pale orange; pronotum black, mainly with a weak purple sheen, but with some mixed coppery and blue; propleuron and prosternum dark brown; mesoscutum black with a weak coppery purple and dark blue sheen; tegula dark brown with a slight brassy and coppery sheen; axilla black with a weak purple sheen; scutellum black with a weak coppery purple sheen, posterior one-third and side with a slightly stronger coppery, blue-green and brassy sheen; dorsum of thorax clothed with dark brown setae; metanotum dark purple-brown with a weak brassy sheen; mesopleuron dark brown with a weak brassy and purple sheen; mesosternum dark brown; fore coxa pale brown, fore leg otherwise very pale orange; mid coxa dark brown; mid femur off-white proximally, apically slightly dusky pale orange, mid tibia pale orange with a faint, external, dark brown, subbasal streak in proximal half, otherwise mid leg pale orange; hind coxa very pale orange; hind femur proximally off-white, medially pale orange and apex mixed brown, hind tibia pale orange, mixed pale brown in proximal half; tarsus pale orange; wings hyaline; propodeum dark brown with a weak brassy and purple sheen, 2 or 3 inconspicuous brown setae outside spiracle; gaster dorsally brown with brassy, purple and blue-green reflections, sides and venter pale orange; gonostylus brown.

Head about 2X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.9X as high as deep, anteriorly largely quite evenly curved from occipital margin to mouth margin with interantennal prominence clearly protuberant; occipital weakly carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 110°; frontovertex shiny, with very shallow, transversely elongate imbricate-reticulate to strigose sculpture; frontovertex with piliferous punctures shallow and indistinct, 2 pairs of setae in front of anterior ocellus, a line of sparse setae along inner eye margin continued along lower eye margin; temple and gena about as shiny as frontovertex, with very shallow longitudinally elongate, strigose to striate-reticulate sculpture; eye not quite reaching occipital margin, separated by a little less than diameter of facet, with inconspicuous pale setae that are a little shorter than diameter of facet, eye separated from scrobal margin by slightly less than diameter of ocellus, area between eye and scrobe with shallow, transversely elongate, imbricate-reticulate sculpture; scrobes meeting, virtually smooth, well delimited, but weakly margined dorsally and laterally; interantennal prominence moderate and distinct, dorsally rounded, sculpture on interantennal prominence polygonally reticulate and about as deep as that on frontovertex; antenna as in Fig. 1346; scape hardly broadened, about 5.2X as long as broad; funicle segments subequal in length and all a little longer than broad, segments broader distad, linear sensilla present F1-F6; clava 3-segmented, slender, not wider than F6, slightly longer than F4-F6 combined, sutures not oblique, sensory area slightly enlarged, extending ventrally about 0.2X length of clava, apex weakly obliquely truncate, appearing almost pointed; clypeal margin medially strongly concave. Relative measurements: HW 46, HH 47.5, FV 23.5, POL 10, OOL 4, OCL 1, AOL 5.5, EL 27.5, EW 20, MS 16, SL 26, SW 5.

Thorax (Fig. 1349) with imbricate-reticulate to polygonally reticulate sculpture on pronotum that is slightly deeper than that on frontovertex; mesoscutum with polygonally reticulate sculpture that is very slightly coarser and perhaps a little deeper than that on frontovertex; axilla with polygonally reticulate sculpture that is about as deep as that on mesoscutum; scutellum slightly convex, anterior median half with polygonally reticulate to longitudinally elongate reticulate sculpture that is a little deeper than that on mesoscutum, apical one-third and side completely smooth and shiny; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.7X as broad as long; scutellum about as long as broad; fore wing with venation and distribution of setae as in Figs 1347, 1348; propodeum (Fig. 1349) medially about 0.2X as long as scutellum and with some very shallow, irregular sculpture medially. Relative measurements: FWL 67, FWW 28.5; HWL 47, HWW 10.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about 0.9X towards apex; syntergum about 0.7X as long as broad and about 0.7X as long as mid tibia, with apex broadly rounded, virtually truncate; ovipositor hardly exserted; hypopygium subrectangular, about 1.2X as broad as long with anterior margin virtually straight. Relative measurements: OL 28, GS 6 [MT 50].

Variation. Only holotype examined.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Limón, RB Hitoy Cerere, 9°40’N 83°02’W, 100m, ii.2004 (J.S. Noyes) . Holotype in NHMUK .

COMMENTS. This species is very close to aligarhensis (Fatma & Shafee) known from India and Europe. Both species having generally similar colouration, linear sensilla on all funicle segments, cellular sculpture on the mesoscutum and longitudinally elongate, almost striate sculpture on the scutellum, and a subquadrate hypopygium with an almost straight anterior margin. Protyndarichoides hermippe can be distinguished from aligarhensis by the head in facial view being conspicuously longer than broad and the antenna inserted below the level of the lower eye margin, whilst in aligarhensis the head is broader than long and the antenna is inserted level with the lower eye margin eye.