Cheiloneurus luceres, 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 : 379-381

Cheiloneurus luceres sp.nov.

( Figs 964-967; Hab. E 142)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.4-1.6mm): body mostly orange, generally with a weak metallic sheen; posterior part of mesoscutum dark brown with a metallic sheen, propodeum dark brown and gaster brown mixed pale orange-brown, paler ventrally, darker areas with a stronger metallic sheen; antenna ( Fig. 967) with scape pale orange; pedicel pale orange; flagellum proximally pale orange, distally dark brown; mesoscutum in posterior half with dense, silvery setae; fore and hind coxae white, mid coxa pale orange; legs mostly white to pale orange with some dark brown areas; fore wing remnant infuscate in a pical quarter, otherwise hyaline; head about 3.5X as wide as frontovertex, in facial view a little broader than long, subcircular, genae converging, weakly curved, but more strongly curved inwards near mouth; frontovertex with about four setae medially above scrobes; eye separated from scrobe by slightly more than diameter of anterior ocellus, area between eye and scrobe with shallow sculpture, scrobes shallow with rounded margins; interantennal prominence with about 15 inconspicuous setae and dorsally rounded; mandible tridentate; antenna ( Fig. 967) with scape about 3.7X as long as broad; F1 slightly longer than broad, remaining segments quadrate or transverse; linear sensilla on F3-F6; clava 3-segmented, about as long as F3-F6 combined, apex with an oblique truncation, sensory area extending about 0.3X along ventral surface of clava; head width slightly greater than flagellum length; mesoscutum ( Fig. 965) medially with mostly polygonally reticulate sculpture, laterally with longitudinally elongate sculpture; scutellum with a distinct, apical tuft of setae; only brachypterous forms known, fore wing ( Fig. 966) about 3.8-3.9X as long as broad and barely reaching cercal plates on gaster; apex of fore wing transversely truncate; parastigma clearly downcurved; costal cell naked apart from one or two setae proximally; area below proximal part of parastigma with a group of about nine paler setae; seta at apex of postmarginal vein about as long as marginal vein; mid tibial spur slightly longer than basitarsus; propodeum with only about four setae adjacent to spiracle; syntergum about 1.3X as long as mid tibia; ovipositor ( Fig. 964) about 3.9X gonostylus or about 2.0X as long as mid tibia; gonostylus about 3.9X as long as mid tibial spur; exserted part of ovipositor about 0.5X as long as mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.56mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.50mm (CPD).

Head orange, generally with a weak brassy and purple sheen; occiput with a weak brown, triangular mark above foramen; frontovertex clothed with fairly inconspicuous, translucent, pale brown setae, a line of more conspicuous setae below eye; interantennal prominence with sparse, inconspicuous setae; maxillary palpus white, apical segment pale orange; antenna ( Fig. 967) with radicle and scape pale orange; pedicel and F1-F3 orange, F4 orange-brown, F5-F6 and clava dark brown; pronotum orange with very weak brassy, coppery and purple reflections, a small, dark brown, triangular mark medially; prosternum pale orange anteriorly, a transverse, dark brown line in front of coxa; mesoscutum in anterior half orange with very weak brassy and coppery reflections and clothed with relatively sparse, golden brown and dark brown setae, side and posterior half brownish with weak coppery reflections and clothed with relatively dense, silvery setae; tegula orange with apex orange-brown; axilla slightly dusky orange, clothed with dark brown setae; scutellum orange, paler towards base, clothed with brown setae, subapical tuft black with anterior setae of tuft translucent and pale golden; metanotum orange; mesopleuron orange with a weak brassy and purple sheen, posterior one-quarter orange-brown with a slightly stronger purple and brassy sheen; mesosternum pale orange, laterally brownish; fore coxa white; fore femur very pale orange, tibia and tarsus pale orange; mid coxa pale orange, inner ventral margin dusky; mid femur white, apex pale orange, tibia pale orange with a brown streak externally for about two-thirds its length, spur and tarsus pale orange; hind coxa white; hind femur pale orange with dorsal margin brownish distally, hind tibia white at base, brownish for about two-thirds its length, otherwise pale orange, tarsus pale orange; remnants of fore wing ( Fig. 966) with apical one-quarter infuscate, otherwise hyaline; submarginal vein mostly pale yellow, venation otherwise brown; propodeum pale orange-brown, medially with a purple and slight brassy sheen, laterally and on side with a coppery and green sheen, 3 or 4 translucent, white setae outside spiracle; gaster dorsally orange-brown to brown, darker basally, Gt1 with a moderately strong green and coppery sheen, otherwise gaster dorsally with weak coppery, purple, brassy, green and blue reflections, Gt3-Gt4 pale orange medially, venter pale orange with weak green, purple and brassy reflections, apex of outer plate brown; gonostylus very pale orange.

Head about 3.5X as wide as frontovertex, in profile 1.6X as high as deep, anteriorly virtually straight from top of scrobes to mouth margin, interantennal prominence slightly protuberant; occipital margin sharp, not carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 80°; frontovertex quite shiny, with fine, shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size subequal to diameter of facet, slightly transversely elongate above scrobes; narrowest point between eye and scrobe very slightly more than diameter of anterior ocellus and with shallow, transversely elongate, polygonally reticulate sculpture; temple and gena with shallow, irregular, elongate, reticulate sculpture, that on temple of larger mesh than that on frontovertex; scrobes quite shallow, ∩-shaped, meeting, not sharply margined; interantennal prominence dorsally rounded and with shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture; antenna as in Fig. 967; scape slightly broadened and flattened, about 3.7X as long as broad, broadest in middle; F1 very slightly longer than broad, F2 slightly transverse to quadrate, remaining segments transverse, distal segments broadest; clava hardly broadened, about as long as F3-F6 combined, sutures slightly oblique, sensory area enlarged, extending ventrally about 0.3X along clava, apex weakly obliquely truncate; eye not quite reaching occipital margin, separated by about diameter of facet, virtually naked but clothed in sparse, inconspicuous, fine, short setae, each much shorter than diameter of facet; inner eye margins clearly diverging anteriorly; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin weakly concave medially; mandible with two acute teeth and a truncate upper tooth, virtually tridentate; apical segment of maxillary palpus not enlarged, hardly longer than radicle. Relative measurements: HW 59.5, HH 57, FV 17, POL 10, OOL 1, OCL 7.5, AOL 7.5, EL 43, EW 31.5, MS 19.5, SL 26, SW 7.

Thorax ( Fig. 965) with pronotum clearly exposed behind head, about 0.8X as long as mesoscutum, pronotum with polygonally reticulate to imbricate-reticulate sculpture that is a little deeper than that on any part of the frontovertex; mesoscutum medially with fairly coarse, regular polygonally reticulate sculpture that is generally similar to that on pronotum, deeper and coarser and more longitudinally elongate laterally; axilla with similar sculpture to mesoscutum; scutellum with slightly deeper and coarser sculpture than mesoscutum; visible part of mesoscutum about 2.1X as broad as long; scutellum about as long as broad, with a distinct, short, apical flange and a distinct subapical tuft, setae mostly about 0.4X as long as scutellum; mid tibia without a distinct external carina; hind femur about 3.7X as long as broad; wings shortened, fore wing reaching a little way past posterior margin of Gt1, apex truncate, venation and setation as in Figs 966; propodeum ( Fig. 965) medially about 0.23X as long as scutellum and virtually smooth; setae on side conspicuous. Relative measurements: FWL 23.5, FWW 6.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about half-way to apex; syntergum about 1.3X as long as mid tibia, with apex acute; ovipositor slightly exserted, the exserted part slightly more than half as long as mid tibial spur or 0.2X mid tibia.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on F3-F6; gaster without “gland-like” structures on Gt1 or Gt5; ovipositor Fig. 964. Relative measurements: OL 54, GL 14 [MT 26].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.42-1.56mm, otherwise very little in material available.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Cartago, Turrialba , CATIE, 22.vi.1994 (P. Hanson) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Cartago, same data as holotype; 1E, Cartago, Turrialba, La Isabel, cafe, 650m, vi.1994 (M. Cerda, P. Hanson); 1E, Cartago, PN Barbilla, Send. Rio Barbilla , LN 596900 217150, 350m, #62446, 11-27.v.2001 (F. Umaña) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in NHMUK .

COMMENTS. Fully winged forms of this species are unknown. If fully winged forms exist, they should be recognisable by the almost completely pale yellow scape and pale proximal funicle segments, dark brown markings on mid and hind tibiae and relatively normal gaster. It is possibly an entirely brachypterous species. In general appearance, it is most similar to perses and can be separated by the characters given in the key. In addition, all specimens of luceres examined have distinct, short wings that reach level with the posterior margin of the basal gastral tergite, the mid and hind tibiae have dark brown markings, the propodeum has only about 6 setae laterally near the spiracle, and the funicle segments are relatively less broad with F6 being about 1.5X as broad as long. In perses the wing remnants hardly reach the metanotum, the mid and hind tibiae have pale orange-brown markings, the propodeum has about 25 setae laterally near the spiracle and the funicle segments are conspicuously broader with F6 being about twice as broad as long.

See also comments under perses (p. 383).