Asobara jenningsi Gupta, 2021

Gupta, Ankita & David, K. J., 2021, A new species of the genus Asobara Foerster (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) parasitic on Zeugodacus cucurbitae (Coquillett) (Diptera: Tephritidae) infesting tomato in India, Zootaxa 5048 (3), pp. 444-450 : 445-449

Asobara jenningsi Gupta sp. nov.

Figs 1–3

Holotype female, length of body (excluding ovipositor) 2.6 mm, length of fore wing 2.7 mm.

Colour. ( Fig. 1 ) Head orangish yellow; ocellar triangle dark brown; antennomere colouration as follows: 1– 3 yellowish, apex of 3 rd and 4–20 brown, 21 pale brown and 22–24 white; mesosoma yellowish brown; wings infuscate, pterostigma with brown colouration in triangular shape, apex pale testaceous and veins C+Sc+R, 1M and 2Cu1 brown; metasoma dark brown (except yellowish brown first tergite).

Head. Width of head 1.3 × its median length ( Fig. 2B ), largely glabrous and strongly shiny dorsally; antenna with 24 antennomeres, densely erect bristly setose, length of third antennomere 0.83 × as long as fourth antennomere, slender, length of third, fourth and penultimate antennomeres 2.9, 4.1 and 2.4 × their width, respectively; eye in dorsal view ( Fig. 2A ) 2.2 × as long as temple, sparsely setose; temple in dorsal view subparallel-sided; OOL: diameter of median ocellus:POL (relative) = 19:5:9 ( Fig. 2A ); minimum width of face 0.55 × maximum width of head and 0.7 × its height, smooth, with some long and erect setae; clypeus transverse and oval, its surface smooth and flattened; anterior tentorial pits indistinct ( Fig. 2B ); length of malar space 0.1 × basal width of mandible; mandible 2.3 × as long as wide, smooth, with a lamella.

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 1.25 × its height; pronotum without pronope; side of pronotum smooth; epicnemial area smooth; precoxal sulcus complete; remainder of mesopleuron smooth ( Fig. 2C ); metapleuron largely smooth, except for a few carinae; notauli only anteriorly impressed, with strong lateral carina and largely absent on disc; medio-posterior depression of mesoscutum small, deep and circular ( Fig. 2F ); mesoscutum smooth and glabrous; scutellar sulcus with one carina, 0.4 × as long as scutellum; scutellum in lateral view rather flat; propodeum smooth except for a short median carina, short costulae and a narrow parallel-sided areola ( Fig. 2H ).

Wings. Pterostigma not linear ( Fig. 2D ); vein r about 0.2 × width of pterostigma, issued at apical 0.3 of pterostigma and vertical; r:3-SR:SR1 (relative) = 3:46:86; SR1 almost straight; cu-a obsolescent, postfurcal; 1- CU1:2-CU1 (relative) =4:22; 2-SR:3-SR:r-m (relative) = 27:46:13; m-cu far antefurcal (2-SR +M 0.4 × as long as m-cu). Hind wing (relative): M+CU + 1-M:1r-m = 55/13; cu-a present.

Legs. Hind coxa smooth and elongate; tarsal claws slender medially; length of femur, tibia and basitarsus of hind leg 3.5, 8.7 and 3.2 × their maximum width, respectively; hind femur, tibia and tarsus with long erect setae.

Metasoma. Length of first tergite 1.1 × its apical width, its dorsal carinae nearly complete; metasoma largely smooth except for carinae in first tergite; length of setose part of ovipositor sheath 0.22 × fore wing, and 0.6 × as long as hind tibia with a few long setae ( Fig. 2G ); ovipositor sheath more or less widened subapically.

Male. ( Fig. 3 ) Paratypes, length of body 2.3−2.5 mm, length of fore wing 2.4−2.6 mm. Males lack the white antennomeres of the females, but the remaining characters have only minor variation (see table 1)

Variation. See table 1.

Type material. Holotype — female, INDIA: Karnataka: Bengaluru, ICAR-NBAIR Yelahanka campus , 13.0968° N, 77.5666° E, 22.ix.2020, ex Zeugodacus cucurbitae (Coquillett) ( Diptera : Tephritidae ) on tomato, coll. Maruthi K. V., code—NBAIR/Brac/Aso/22920A ( NIM). Paratypes: two females, two males, same data as holotype, code—NBAIR/Brac/ Aso/22920B–E (NIM). All types deposited in the National Insect Museum (ICAR- NBAIR), Bengaluru, India.

Etymology. The species name is warmly dedicated to Dr John T. Jennings, The University of Adelaide, Australia for his relentless efforts in editing numerous manuscripts and thus contributing to the science of Ichneumonoid taxonomy.

Host. Reared from melon fly, Zeugodacus cucurbitae (Coquillett) ( Diptera : Tephritidae ) infesting tomato. This new species of parasitoid is of great significance as it parasitizes one of the most problematic agricultural pests.

Remarks. The new species is similar to A. orientalis Viereck reported from India, Korea and Philippines (Luzon). It differs in having apical 3–4 antennomeres white (apical 7−8 white in A. orientalis ); eyes and temples not rounded in a common curve (rounded in a common curve in A. orientalis ); eyes 2.2 × as long as temple (eyes 4.0 × as long as temple in A. orientalis ); pterostigma with brown colouration in triangular shape, apex pale testaceous (pterostigma uniformly brown in A. orientalis ); ovipositor sheath more or less widened subapically (narrow subapically in A. orientalis ); propodeum with costulae (without costulae in A. orientalis ), third antennomere of female about 3.0 × as long as wide (about 7.0 × in A. orientalis ) and precoxal sulcus complete (absent anteriorly in A. orientalis ).

When compared with the other species present in India, A. pumilio Fischer & Samiuddin , A. jenningsi differs remarkably in having comparatively wider pterostigma with brown colouration in triangular shape, apex pale testaceous; vein r about 0.2 × width of pterostigma (pterostigma linear in A. pumilio see illustrations pg. 135 in Fischer & Samiuddin 2008); vein r issued at apical one third of pterostigma (r arising behind base of pterostigma by its own length in A. pumilio ); eye length (dorsal view) 2.2 × as long as temple (as long as temple in A. pumilio ); body size ranges from 2.6−2.7 mm (body tiny in size, about 1 mm in A. pumilio ).

The new species can be separated from the South Korean species, A. brevicauda van Achterberg and Guerrieri , in having cu-a of hind wing present (absent in A. brevicauda ); length of setose part of ovipositor sheath 0.19– 0.22 × fore wing and 0.6–0.9 × as long as hind tibia (0.12 × fore wing and 0.4 × hind tibia in A. brevicauda ); third antennomere of female about 2.9 × as long as wide (about 4.5 × in A. brevicauda ); length of third, fourth and penultimate antennomeres 2.9, 4.1 and 2.4 × their width, respectively (length of third, fourth and penultimate antennomeres 4.5, 6.5 and 3.0 × their width, respectively in A. brevicauda ) and length of femur, tibia and basitarsus of hind leg 3.5, 8.7 and 3.2 × their maximum width, respectively (length of femur, tibia and basitarsus of hind leg 4.6, 10.0 and 5.0 × their width, respectively in A. brevicauda ).

The new species can be separated from the other South Korean species as follows: fourth antennomere 4 × as long as wide (fourth antennomere strongly elongate about 10 × as long as wide in A. elongata ); propodeum yellowish brown with dark brown costular margins (propodeum black in A. elongata ); 3-SR vein of fore wing about 8−15 × as long as r vein (3-SR vein of fore wing about 5 × as long as r vein in A. mesocauda and 6 × as long as r vein in A. triangulata ; length of third, fourth and penultimate antennomeres 2.9, 4.1 and 2.4 × their width (4.5, 6.5 and 4.0 times their width in A. unicolorata ); 3-SR, SR1 and 2-M veins pale (3-SR, SR1 and 2-M dark brown in A. unicolorata ); antenna with 24 antennomeres (21 antennomeres in A. unicolorata ).

Asobara jenningsi can be further differentiated from other two well known species present in the Asian continent, A. japonica Belokobylskij and A. leveri (Nixon) , in the following characters: vein r about 0.2 × width of pterostigma (r 0.4 × width of pterostigma in A. japonica ; 0.6 × width of pterostigma in A. leveri ); length of third, fourth and penultimate antennomeres 2.9, 4.1 and 2.4 × their width (4.5, 7.0 and 3.0 × their width in A. japonica ; 4.0, 6.0 and 3.5 times in A. leveri ); female with 3−4 apical antennomeres white, in male none white (antenna of female with 4-5 white apical antennomeres, male with 2−3 white in A. japonica ); antenna with 24 antennomeres (20 antennomeres in A. leveri ).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Asobara jenningsi Gupta sp. nov. (female) A. Habitus (in dorsal view); Habitus (in lateral view).

FIGURE 2. Asobara jenningsi Gupta sp. nov. (female) A. Head, dorsal view, B. Head, frontal view, C. Mesopleuron, D. Fore wing, E. Hind wing, F. Mesosoma, G. Metasoma, H. Propodeum.

FIGURE 3. Asobara jenningsi Gupta sp. nov. (male) in lateral view.