Cheiloneurus leda, 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 : 377-379

Cheiloneurus leda sp.nov.

( Figs 958-963; Hab. E 141)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.6-1.9mm): 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, darker areas with a stronger metallic sheen; antenna ( Fig. 960) with scape pale orange, ventral margin brown; pedicel pale orange, brown proximally; funicle proximally white, medially orange and distally dark brown; clava dark brown; mesoscutum in posterior half with dense, golden brown to silvery setae; coxae white; legs mostly white to pale orange with some dark brown areas; fore wing ( Fig. 961) mostly infuscate with a V-shaped hyaline area in basal cell, a small hyaline area at apex of venation and a larger one opposite; head ( Fig. 962) about 3.7X as wide as frontovertex, in facial view hardly broader than long, subrectangular, genae converging, more strongly curved inwards near mouth; frontovertex with about ten setae medially above scrobes; eye separated from scrobe by about diameter of anterior ocellus, area between eye and scrobe with shallow sculpture, scrobes moderately deep and sharply margined; interantennal prominence with about 12 inconspicuous setae and dorsally rounded; mandible tridentate; antenna ( Fig. 960) with scape about 3.5X as long as broad; F1 slightly longer than broad, remaining segments 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 less than flagellum length; mesoscutum ( Fig. 959) generally with slightly longitudinally elongate polygonally reticulate sculpture, more elongate laterally; scutellum with a distinct, apical tuft of setae and with a short, very thin, apical flange; wings fully developed; fore wing ( Fig. 961) about 3.6X as long as broad; parastigma clearly downcurved; costal cell dorsally naked, ventrally with a line of setae that reaches about half way to apex; area below proximal part of parastigma with a group of about 35, mostly paler setae; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a naked, hyaline line that hardly extends into disc ( Fig. 958); seta at apex of postmarginal vein about 0.6X as long as marginal vein; mid tibial spur slightly longer than basitarsus; propodeum with only about three setae adjacent to spiracle; syntergum about 1.2X as long as mid tibia; ovipositor ( Fig. 963) about 3.3X gonostylus or about 2.2X as long as mid tibia; gonostylus about 2.2X as long as mid tibial spur; exserted part of ovipositor about 1.3X as long as mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.85mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.65mm ( CPD) .

Head with occiput orange, a dark brown, triangular mark above foramen; frontovertex orange with a weak brassy sheen; scrobal area orange with a weak purple and brassy sheen; temple orange with a diagonal pale brown line across temple towards torulus and a moderate blue, green, coppery and purple sheen; gena orange with a weak brassy sheen; frontovertex clothed with fairly inconspicuous, translucent, pale brown setae along inner eye margins, a line of more conspicuous setae below eye; interantennal prominence with similar, but shorter and more dense setae; maxillary palpus white; antenna ( Fig. 960) with radicle pale orange, apex with a broad brown ring; scape very pale orange, almost white, with ventral margin brown in proximal three-fifths and extreme apex brown; pedicel pale orange, pale brown internally towards base; F1-F2 white, F3-F4 pale orange, F5 dark orange-brown, F6 and clava dark brown; pronotum orange with very weak green, brassy and purple reflections, neck dark brown; prosternum pale orange, dark brown in front of coxa; mesoscutum orange with very weak purple and coppery reflections, anterior half or so clothed with slightly flattened, relatively sparse, golden brown setae, posterior half with slightly flattened, relatively dense setae; tegula orange with apex orange-brown; axilla pale orange; scutellum orange at base, side and apex, yellow in middle, clothed with brown setae, subapical tuft black; metanotum orange-brown; mesopleuron orange-brown, anteriorly with a weak blue, brassy and purple sheen, posteriorly with a purple and brassy sheen; mesosternum pale orange; fore coxa white; fore femur white, orange towards apex, with a subapical, V-shaped, brown mark dorsally, tibia pale orange with an incomplete, subbasal, brown ring; tarsus pale orange; mid coxa white; mid femur white, apex pale orange with a distinct, brown, subapical mark internally, tibia white at base, an incomplete, subbasal brown band, otherwise very pale orange, tibial spur and tarsus very pale orange; hind coxa white; hind femur white at base, otherwise pale orange with dorsal margin brown distally, hind tibia white at base, otherwise pale orange mixed pale brown externally, hind tarsus white, pale orange apically; fore wing ( Fig. 961) mostly infuscate, hyaline towards base, along anterior margin distad of venation and at apex; submarginal vein pale orange, venation otherwise brown; propodeum brown with a coppery, brassy, purple and blue sheen, side with a weak green, coppery and brassy sheen, 5 translucent, white setae outside spiracle; gaster brown with a coppery, purple, blue, green and brassy sheen, basal tergites more strongly coppery and brassy; sternites orange, hypopygium mostly brown; visible part of gonostylus white with apex broadly orange-brown.

Head ( Fig. 962) about 3.7X as wide as frontovertex, in profile 1.5X as high as deep, anteriorly virtually straight from top of scrobes to mouth margin, interantennal prominence slightly protuberant; occipital margin sharp, carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 85°; frontovertex quite shiny, almost completely smooth between occipital margin and ocelli, anteriorly with fine, shallow, transversely elongate, reticulate to imbricate-reticulate sculpture; narrowest area between eye and scrobe about equal to 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 moderately deep, ∩-shaped, meeting and sharply margined dorsally and below eye; interantennal prominence dorsally rounded and with shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture; antenna as in Fig. 960; scape broadened and flattened, about 3.5X as long as broad, broadest in middle; F1 very slightly longer than broad, F2 slightly transverse, remaining segments clearly 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 obliquely truncate; eye not quite reaching occipital margin, separated by slightly more than diameter of facet, clothed in inconspicuous, fine, short setae, each a little shorter than diameter of facet; inner eye margins subparallel; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin weakly concave medially; mandible tridentate; apical segment of maxillary palpus not enlarged, hardly longer than radicle. Relative measurements: HW 69, HH 68, FV 18.5, POL 11, OOL 1, OCL 11, AOL 8.5, EL 55.5, EW 37, MS 21, SL 33, SW 9.5.

Thorax ( Fig. 959) with pronotum moderately exposed behind head, about 0.8X as long as mesoscutum, pronotum with coarse, polygonally reticulate sculpture that is clearly deeper than that on any part of the frontovertex; mesoscutum with fairly regular polygonally reticulate sculpture that is generally similar to that on pronotum, but clearly deeper and coarser and slightly longitudinally elongate, more so laterally; axilla and scutellum with similar sculpture to mesoscutum; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.6X as broad as long; scutellum about as long as broad, with a distinct, short, very thin apical flange and a distinct subapical tuft, setae mostly about 0.6X as long as scutellum; mid tibia without an external carina; hind femur about 4.2X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 958, 961; costal cell naked dorsally at apex; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a distinct, naked, hyaline streak ( Fig. 958); propodeum ( Fig. 959) medially about 0.25X as long as scutellum and virtually smooth; setae on side short and inconspicuous. Relative measurements: FWL 59, FWW 16.5; HWL 54, HWW 9.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about 0.4X to apex; syntergum about 1.2X as long as mid tibia, with apex weakly angular; ovipositor clearly exserted, the exserted part about 1.3X as long as mid tibial spur or 0.4X mid tibia.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on F3-F6; gaster without “gland-like” structures on Gt1 or Gt5; ovipositor Fig. 963. Relative measurements: OL 70, GL 21 [MT 32].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.60-1.85mm, the ocelli may form an angle of about 95°, otherwise very little in material available.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Guanacaste, Santa Rosa NP , i.1991 (Gauld, Janzen) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Guanacaste, Santa Rosa NP, Hacienda 1-0, 10-31.i.1987 (Janzen, Gauld) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratype in NHMUK .

COMMENTS. See comments under feritas (p. 349).