Eusemion themisto, 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 : 502-503

Eusemion themisto sp.nov.

(Figs 1255-1261; Hab. E 183)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.0- 1.7mm): body orange-brown with a slight metallic sheen; frontovertex metallic green and purple; legs generally pale orange; frontovertex (Fig. 1260) one-quarter to one-fifth head width; piliferous punctures conspicuous and separated by less than their own diameters; ocelli forming an angle of about 60°; scrobes sharply margined below eyes; funicle segments (Fig. 1261) subequal in width from F2-F6; linear sensilla present on F5 and F6; fore wing (Fig. 1255) with basal cell uniformly infuscate, parastigma not downcurved and not swollen; mid tibial spur slightly longer than basitarsus. Male: Unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.52mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.46mm (CPD).

Body generally pale orange-brown; frontovertex with a distinct purple sheen along occipital margin, in ocellar area and above scrobes, otherwise metallic green to blue-green; area between eye and scrobe weakly coppery, purple and brassy; temple with a slight coppery, brassy and bluish sheen; gena with a very weak brassy sheen; scrobes and interantennal prominence with a weak brassy sheen; a brown band between lower margins of toruli; pronotum with a weak coppery, purple and brassy lustre; mesoscutum and scutellum with weak purple and dark blue lustre; axilla with a weak purple and brassy lustre; mesopleuron with a weak brassy and purple lustre; legs, including coxae, generally pale orange, hind tibia with an orange-brown band in middle two-thirds; fore wing (Fig. 1255) mostly infuscate, hyaline at apex, widest part of apical hyaline area a little less than 0.2X as wide as maximum wing width, venation mainly pale dusky orange, marginal vein orange-brown; propodeum with a weak brassy and purple sheen; gaster dorsally with a slight brassy sheen, basal tergites mixed brown and with purple and green reflections, syntergum pale orange, slightly dusky along margins, side and venter of gaster with brassy, green, coppery and purple reflections; gonostylus pale orange.

Head (Fig. 1260) about 4.7X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.5X as high as deep with frontovertex evenly, slightly convex between occipital margin and top of scrobes, abruptly bent at about 90° at top of scrobes and virtually straight from there to mouth margin with interantennal prominence hardly protuberant; occipital margin sharp, weakly carinate; a broadly oval, elongate, shiny-bottomed, depression adjacent to eye margin alongside, and slightly behind, posterior ocellus; ocelli forming an angle of about 50°; frontovertex quite shiny, with moderately deep, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size smaller to eye facet, this obscured by deep, shiny-bottomed piliferous punctures that are mostly separated by less than their own diameters giving the surface of the frontovertex the appearance of a thimble or golf ball; frontovertex virtually smooth immediately above scrobes and between eye and scrobe; temple and gena with moderately deep, conspicuous, longitudinally elongate imbricate-reticulate to striate-reticulate sculpture; scrobes with shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture; interantennal prominence with similar sculpture to scrobes but slightly deeper; narrowest point between eye and transfacial ridge slightly narrower than diameter of anterior ocellus; scrobes moderately deep, sharply margined below eyes, broadly ∩-shaped; interantennal prominence dorsally rounded; antenna as in Fig. 1261; scape about 1.8X as long as broad, subtrapezoidal in appearance with dorsal margin angular a little below middle; clava enlarged, only slightly wider than F6, but only very slightly shorter than pedicel and funicle combined, sutures oblique, sensory area enlarged about 0.7X as long as clava, apex obliquely truncate; eye reaching occipital margin, clothed in fairly conspicuous setae, each slightly shorter than diameter of facet; clypeal margin slightly concave medially; mandible with 3 acute teeth. Relative measurements: HW 68, HH 60, FVL 47, FV 14.5, POL 6.5, OOL 1.5, OCL 5, AOL 9, EL 46.5, EW 36, MS 28, SL 43, SW 24.

Thorax (Fig. 1258) with pronotum hardly exposed behind head, about 0.5X as long as mesoscutum; pronotum, mesoscutum, axilla and scutellum with polygonally reticulate sculpture that is generally shallower, but of larger mesh than that on frontovertex; visible part of mesoscutum about 2.3X as broad as long; scutellum about as broad as long; hind femur about 4X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 1255, 1257; costal cell with a line of 5 setae dorsally in apical one-third; parastigma without a triangular expansion; propodeum medially about 0.15X as long as scutellum and with a few longitudinal carinae medially, otherwise virtually smooth, about 5 fairly conspicuous setae outside spiracle. Relative measurements: FWL 60.5, FWW 26.5; HWL 48, HWW 13.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about 0.6X to apex; last tergite about as long as mid tibia, with apex acute; ovipositor slightly exserted, the exserted part about 0.4X length of mid tibial spur or about 0.15X mid tibia.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on F5-F6; hypopygium Fig. 1259; ovipositor Fig. 1256. Relative measurements: OL 103, GL 29 [MT 73.5].

Variation. Females vary in length from 1.00- 1.68mm, the head varies from about 4.1-4.8X as wide as the frontovertex, otherwise very little variation noted in material examined.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica, middle elevations.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, Macizo Miravalles , Est. Cabro Muco, LN 299769 411243, 1100m, #73635, iii.2003 (J. Azofeifa) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 2E, Guanacaste, Macizo Miravalles, Est. Cabro Muco , LN 299769 411243, 1100m, 18-24.iii.2003 and iii.2003 (J. Azofeifa); 3E , Alajuela, PN Arenal, Sect. La Peninsula, LN 453800 271500, 600m, T. Amarilla, #56556, 17.vi.2000 (G. Carballo); 1E , Heredia, Santo Domingo , INBio, cafetal, 6-7.iii.1996 (Masner); 1E, Heredia, Santo Domingo, INBio, 1100m, YPT (compost), 6-7.iii.1996 (L. Masner); 1E , Puntarenas, Monteverde, St. Luis Valley , 1400m, 17.viii.1986 (L. Masner) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in MZUCR, NHMUK and CNC .

COMMENTS. Eusemion themisto is very similar to cornigerum (Walker) but differs in having the apical hyaline area of the fore wing narrower, at its widest point about 0.17X (one-sixth) maximum wing width and the body, including the legs, generally orange-brown. In cornigerum the apical hyaline area about 0.33X (one-third) as wide as the maximum wing width and the body, is dark brown with a distinct metallic sheen with the legs mostly dark brown.

I have examined the remains of the holotype of Mira longipennis (USNM: “Jacksonville Fla” “Type No 4764 U.S. N.M.” (red label) “ Eusemion (Mira) longipennis E Type Ashm.”), but unfortunately most is missing. It is represented only by the basal two-thirds of left fore wing, flagellum with clava partially eaten by psocids (Psocoptera), fore tibia and tarsus, mid femur and tibia, hind femur and tibia and the hind tibia. In his original description of longipennis, Ashmead (1888) stated that the body was dark blue, the gena red and the legs mostly black with the tarsi brown. He also noted that the distal apex of the scape projected as a sharp point to one side, a condition that is often seen in European specimens of cornigerum . The parts of the holotype that remain agree with cornigerum and, together with the original description, strongly suggest that longipennis and cornigerum are the same species. Eusemion cornigerum certainly occurs in North America but it would be necessary to compare freshly collected material from Jacksonville, Florida with the remains of the holotype to be sure of the synonymy.