Cheiloneurus varablus, 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 : 249-251

Cheiloneurus varablus sp.nov.

( Figs 620-624; Hab. E 95)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.9mm): body dark brown to black, with a weak to moderate metallic sheen; antenna ( Fig. 622) with scape dark brown, apex white; pedicel dark brown with some white; funicle proximally orange-brown, distally pale yellow; clava dark brown; mesoscutum with sparse, translucent setae that may appear silvery; fore and hind coxae white, mid coxa dark brown, apex white; legs largely white to pale orange with dark brown areas on femora and tibiae; fore wing ( Fig. 624) hyaline; head ( Fig. 620) about 3.7X as wide as frontovertex, in facial view slightly broader than long, subcircular, genae evenly curved, converging; frontovertex with 1 seta medially between anterior ocellus and scrobes; eye separated from scrobe by about 1.5X diameter of anterior ocellus, area between eye and scrobe with conspicuous sculpture; scrobes moderately deep, not sharply margined, interantennal prominence with about 13 inconspicuous setae, dorsally rounded, without a median ridge; mandible tridentate; antenna ( Fig. 622) with scape about 2.4X as long as broad; funicle with F1 subquadrate, F2-F6 clearly transverse; clava 3-segmented, about as long as F2-F6 combined; sensory area enlarged, extending ventrally about 0.4X length of clava, apex obliquely truncate; head width very slightly greater than flagellum length; mesoscutum ( Fig. 621) anteriorly with distinctly obliquely elongate reticulate to striate-reticulate sculpture in anterior half, posteriorly with regular polygonally reticulate sculpture; scutellum with an distinct, relatively short, subapical tuft of setae; wings fully developed, fore wing ( Fig. 624) about 2.6X as long as broad; parastigma not downcurved; costal cell dorsally with 3 or 4 apical setae, ventrally with a complete line of setae; area below proximal part of parastigma with a group of about 17 uniform, fine setae connecting with a line of 2 or 3 setae along cubital vein track towards base of wing; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins ( Fig. 623) not connected by a naked hyaline area; apical bristle of postmarginal vein about 0.3X as long as marginal vein; mid tibial spur about as long as basitarsus; propodeum with about 20 inconspicuous setae adjacent to spiracle, side naked; syntergum about 1.2X as long as mid tibia with apex acute; ovipositor about 3.0X gonostylus or about 1.9X as long as mid tibia; gonostylus about 1.8X as long as long mid tibial spur; exserted part of ovipositor about as long as mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.89mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.78mm (CPD).

Head black with a dull metallic green and purple sheen on frontovertex with some slightly brassy areas, scrobal area with a distinct, deep, purple sheen that extends to lower part of interantennal prominence where it is delimited by a narrow blue line between lower parts of toruli, metallic green below this; mouth margin metallic green; purple area of scrobes extending between eye and scrobe and becoming slightly coppery on lower gena, shining metallic green and coppery purple outside this; temple predominantly shining metallic green mixed with some coppery and brassy areas; gena metallic blue-green immediately below eye, otherwise coppery purple; frontovertex clothed with inconspicuous dark brown setae; antenna ( Fig. 622) with radicle dark brown; scape mostly dark brown with apical one-fifth white; pedicel dark brown in proximal two-thirds, apex and venter white; funicle with F1-F3 orange-brown, F4 dusky pale orange, F5 dusky yellow, F6 pale yellow; clava dark brown; palpi white; thorax mostly dark brown to black; pronotum with a dull coppery-purple sheen with some dull metallic dark blue; mesoscutum clothed with fairly conspicuous, evenly distributed, silvery, translucent setae and metallic dark blue-green with some dark green, posterior margin coppery purple; tegula dark brown; axilla dark brown, matt; scutellum clothed with dark brown setae, more or less matt but with a very slight metallic dark blue sheen, extreme apex and side with a strong metallic dark green and coppery sheen; metanotum with slight purple sheen; mesopleuron in anterior half with a metallic dark green sheen and some coppery areas, posterior half with a coppery sheen; fore coxa white, proximal half of femur white, distal half of femur dark brown, tibia white at extreme base, dark brown area to about 0.6X, apex pale orange, tarsus dusky pale orange; mid coxa dark brown in proximal half, apical half white, mid femur white in proximal half, apical half dark brown with extreme apex white, tibia with a small dark brown spot at extreme base, a narrow, white subbasal ring, dark brown to about 0.4X, and apex pale orange, spur pale orange, tarsus pale orange, apical tarsomere orange-brown; hind coxa white, femur with proximal one-third white, apex dark brown, tibia with a narrow subbasal white band, dark brown to about 0.7X apex pale orange, tarsus dusky pale orange, apical tarsomere orange-brown; fore wing ( Fig. 624) virtually completely hyaline but with a faint yellow-brown area immediately below marginal vein, venation pale brown; propodeum dark brown, medially dark purple-brown with a brassy sheen, laterally and on side with a metallic green and coppery sheen, with conspicuous silvery setae in spiracular area; gaster dark brown, mainly with a coppery sheen on dorsum, Gt1 distinctly metallic dark blue mixed metallic dark blue-green, remainder of gaster mixed brassy with coppery, coppery red and dark green, sides of apical tergites metallic green; outer plates of ovipositor purple and dark green; gonostylus dark brown.

Head ( Fig. 620) about 3.7X as wide as frontovertex about 1.7X as high as deep; occipital margin sharp and without a median groove to foramen; ocelli forming an angle of about 60°; frontovertex slightly shiny, with conspicuous, fairly deep, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size about equal to diameter of eye facet; scrobes, interantennal prominence and mouth margin with shallow sculpture, almost smooth; temple and posterior gena completely smooth adjacent to eye margin but otherwise with shallow, irregular, longitudinally elongate polygonally reticulate sculpture; scrobes moderately deep, meeting dorsally, dorsal and lateral margins weakly rounded; narrowest part between eye and scrobal margin equal to 1.5X diameter of anterior ocellus, scrobes moderately deep, meeting dorsally, well-defined but not sharply margined, broadly ∩-shaped, interantennal prominence dorsally rounded, without a median ridge; antenna as in Fig. 622; scape conspicuously broadened and flattened, about 2.4X as long as broad; funicle with F1 subquadrate, all other segments transverse and broadening distad, linear sensilla present only on F4-F6; clava about as long as F2-F6 combined, both sutures slightly oblique, sensory area about 0.7X as long as ventral surface, forming an oblique truncation that extends about 0.4X along clava; eye virtually reaching occipital margin, separated by much less than diameter of facet and clothed in fairly inconspicuous setae that are each slightly shorter than diameter of facet; malar sulcus absent mandible with 2 long, acute lower teeth and very short upper, third tooth that originates from about one-third along middle tooth. Relative measurements: HW 90, HH 88, FV 24.5, OD 7, POL 11.5, OOL 2.5, OCL 6.5, AOL 12, EL 57, EW 45, MS 35, SL 48.5, SW 20.

Thorax ( Fig. 621) with irregular, polygonally reticulate sculpture on pronotum, about as deep as that on frontovertex but generally of slightly larger mesh; sculpture on posterior half of mesoscutum largely similar but obliquely elongate in anterior half where it becomes laterally distinctly striate-reticulate; sculpture on axilla coarser and reticulate; scutellum mostly with coarse, longitudinally elongate, reticulate sculpture more or less arranged in whorls, extreme apex and sides completely smooth; visible part of mesoscutum about 1.6X as broad as long; scutellum about as long as broad, subapical tuft distinct, setae about 0.4X as long as scutellum; hind femur about 3.8X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 623, 624; costal cell with 4 setae dorsally at apex; no naked streak present between apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins ( Fig. 623); propodeum ( Fig. 621) with about 17 setae in spiracular area, side naked, medially about 0.1X as long as scutellum and medially with a small area of fine, shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture. Relative measurements: FWL 129, FWW 50; HWL 100, HWW 25.

Gaster without “gland-like” structures on Gt1 or Gt5; hypopygium reaching about 0.4X to apex; syntergum about 1.2X as long as mid tibia, apex acute; ovipositor exserted, the exserted part about as long as mid tibial spur or about 0.22X as long as mid tibia. Relative measurements: OL 70, GL 23.5 [MT 37.5].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.78-1.89mm, the scape varies from about 2.1- 2.4X as long as broad and the exserted part of the ovipositor varies from about 0.6X as long the mid tibial spur to about as long.

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Heredia, 9km NE Vara Blanca , 10°14’N 84°06’W, 1450- 1550m, 15/TN/20/010, 20.iii.2005 ( INBio / OET-ALAS) . Paratype: COSTA RICA: 1E, San José, Zurqui de Moravia , 1600m, i.1995 (P. Hanson) . Holotype and paratype in NHMUK .

COMMENTS. As the key suggests Cheiloneurus varablus , rosea and salome are very similar. Apart from the conspicuously wider scape, varablus can be distinguished additionally from rosea by having the anterior half of the mesopleuron largely with a metallic dark green sheen contrasting with the coppery posterior half, whereas in rosea the mesopleuron is dark purple with some blue reflections anteriorly.