Psyllaephagus phacopteron S. Singh

Singh, Sudhir & Singh, Karan Pal, 2011, Description of two new species of Psyllaephagus Ashmead (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) parasitizing Phacopteron lentiginosum Buckton (Hemiptera: Psyllidae), a leaf gall-former of Garuga pinnata Roxburgh (Burseraceae), Zootaxa 2885, pp. 33-43 : 35-38

Psyllaephagus phacopteron S. Singh , sp. nov.

( Figs 1–8 , 21–24 , 29 )

Diagnosis. Female head and mesonotum bright metallic green and with large setigerous punctations; antenna variably brown; legs pale except middle and hind coxae brown; ovipositor sheaths (III-valvulae) slightly exserted and pale. Male similar to female in color except scape yellow, inner face of scape at basal third conical in cross-section and with a narrow black band along its entire length; funicle light brown with lighter band along ventral margin.

In the key to African species of Psyllaephagus by Prinsloo (1981), P. phacopteron runs to couplet 11. It is similar to P. chianganus on the basis of leg color, but other features of the antennae, body color and ratios do not match.

Description. FEMALE. Length, excluding ovipositor sheaths, 3.12–3.81 mm (3.55 ± 0.21 mm), length of exserted part of ovipositor sheaths 0.14–0.19 mm (0.16 ± 0.025 mm), n = 9; holotype 3.72 mm, exserted part of ovipositor sheath 0.19 mm.

Color/Sculpture. Head ( Figs 3, 4 ) metallic green with golden reflections; frontovertex metallic green with light golden reflections; ocellar area with small, irregular punctuations about one-quarter to one-third diameter of median ocellus, frontovertex anterior to ocellar triangle with larger punctations, the punctations with white translucent setae; lower part of face, dorsal part of scrobes, antennal prominence, and malar area below eyes and anterior to malar sulcus with deep metallic bronzy reflections, the parascrobal area and area below eyes with small punctations with silvery white, scaly setae. Eyes brown, bare; ocelli dark red. Antenna with brown setae; radicle dark brown; scape and pedicel mostly light brown but dorsal and ventral margins darker; funicle and club dark brown, except funicle with a lighter band along ventral margin. Mandibles reddish-brown. Maxillary and labial palpi light yellow.

Mesosoma ( Figs 1, 2, 6 ) with pro- and mesonotum metallic green with reticulate-punctuate sculpture, the punctations large with silvery white setae, and setae becoming longer towards apex of scutellum and converging to a subapical point; mesoscutum with about 10–12 transverse rows of punctations; tegula honey colored with white setae; prepectus with a central metallic green basal area and wide, white outer rim; mesopleuron dark brown with lighter green and anteriorly golden red reflections, reticulately sculptured; metanotum and propodeum dark brown without any metallic reflections; propodeal spiracles with tufts of long, silvery white, wavy setae. Middle and hind coxae black except distal margin of middle coxa pale; legs otherwise pale honey colored with similar colored setae except claws darker. Middle leg with 10 mesotibial apical pegs, tarsomere 5 (basitarsus) with 27, tarsomere 4 with 10, tarsomere 3 with 9, and tarsomere 2 with 7 pegs. Wings hyaline, venation pale.

Metasoma black with bronzy purple reflections; ovipositor sheaths pale.

Structure. Head in frontal view ( Fig. 3 ) round, slightly wider in dorsal two-thirds, 1.18x (1070: 906) as wide as high; 3.77x (1070: 284) as wide as frontovertex at level of median ocellus; eyes in frontal view with inner margins diverging, almost straight but slightly angled at middle of scrobe, 2.13x (636: 298) as high as wide; scrobes shallow, merging dorsally, distance between torulus and median ocellus 2.58x (449: 174) length of scrobe; torulus with center in line with lower margin of eyes, 1.77x (161: 91) as high as wide; distance between toruli 1.3x, distance between torulus and mouth margin equal to, and distance between torulus and eye 0.86x as long as height of torulus (= 209: 161: 138: 161); distance between torulus and median ocellus 2.78x (449: 161) distance between torulus and mouth margin.. Head in dorsal view ( Fig. 4 ) with both anterior and occipital margins concave, the later more so; frontovertex narrowest at level of middle of ocellar triangle, ocelli in a right-angled triangle; POL 2.5x, OCL 1.2x, and OOL 0.18x as long as diameter of median ocellus (= 152: 73: 11: 61). Head in profile with malar space onethird (301: 906) head height; eye 1.43x (641: 447) as high as wide. Antenna ( Fig. 5 ) with scape expanded ventrally within distal three-quarters, 4x (499: 123) as long as wide; pedicel conical, 1.75x (112: 64) as long as wide; funicle segments all longer than wide, F1 the longest, about one-third as long as scape and 2.78x (167: 60) as long as wide, F2 2.23x (144: 64), F3 2.35x (154: 66), F4 2x (148: 72), F5 1.7x (132: 77), and F6 1.25x (112: 90) as long as wide; club 2.7x (242: 90) as long as wide, as long as preceding two funicle segments combined.

Mesosoma ( Fig. 6 ) 1.4x (1548: 1111) as long as wide, slightly wider than head (1111: 1070); pronotum a narrow strip 14x (868: 62) as wide as long; mesoscutum convex, 1.44x (1075: 744) as wide as long and half as long as mesosoma, with posterior margin slightly curved mesally; axillae narrowly separated; scutellum convex, 1.18x (698: 587) as long as wide, slightly shorter than mesoscutum (698: 744); propodeum a narrow strip, about 20x as wide as long, with basal one-third under projected scutellum. Fore wing 2.5x (2740: 1096) as long as wide; marginal vein as long as wide (166); stigmal vein 1.16x as long as postmarginal vein (408: 352) ( Fig. 7 ). Hind wing 3x (1925: 637) as long as wide, 1.53x (1925: 1259) as long as venation. Middle tibial spur shorter than basitarsus.

Metasoma elongate-conical, posteriorly pointed, 2x (1965: 964) as long as wide and 1.27x as long as mesosoma, with cercal plates situated at anterior one-third; hypopygium extending to basal third; ovipositor sheaths slightly exserted; ovipositor as in Fig. 8 (paratype).

MALE. Length 2.51–2.7 mm (2.6 ± 0.13 mm, n = 2).

Color/Sculpture. Head and mesosoma dorsally bright metallic yellowish-green, metasoma dark brown with a little purple reflection; legs yellowish with middle and hind coxae brown.

Head in frontal view bright metallic green except frontovertex with narrow area below median ocellus with golden hue, frontovertex with contiguous setigerous punctures (placed rim to rim) ranging in size from one-third to one-quarter diameter of median ocellus; setae translucent with yellowish tinge, longer than diameter of a punctation; scrobal region bluish-green with prominent reticulately punctuate sculpture; antennal prominence with golden hue; parascrobal and antennal prominence areas with with golden hue and translucent white scaly setae; malar area and mouth margin less metallic green with dark brown edges, and with white setae. Mandibles brown, palpi pale like legs. Antenna with radicle and scape pale; inner face of scape with median longitudinal dark brown streak.

Mesosoma dorsally bright metallic green with golden reflections, darker areas on lateral and ventral sides with comparatively lighter greenish reflections; reticulately punctuate and with silvery white setae; legs yellow except hind and basal half of middle coxae dark brown; wings hyaline.

Metasoma dark brown, dorsally with purple to light green, lateral and ventral sides with greenish reflections.

Structure. Head in frontal view rounded, 1.15x (770: 666) as wide as high; inner margins of eyes smoothly diverging to dorsal margin of scrobes and thereafter diverging sharply; scrobes shallow, short, and not merging dorsally; center of torulus in line with lower margins of eyes; distance between toruli 2x, distance between torulus and eye 0.75x, and distance between torulus and mouth margin 1.67x as long as height of torulus (= 207: 74: 173: 103); distance between torulus and median ocellus about 1.7x (296: 173) distance between torulus and mouth margin; head height 4x distance between torulus and mouth margin. Head in dorsal view 2.36x (770: 326) as wide as frontovertex at level of median ocellus, both anterior and occipital margins concave; ocelli arranged in obtuse-angle triangle; POL 3.5x, OOL 0.37x, and OCL 0.75x diameter of median ocellus (= 207: 22: 44: 59). Head in profile with height 3x (666: 222) malar space; eye 1.4x (435: 296) as long as wide. Antenna ( Fig. 21 ) with scape 2.4x (304: 119) as long as wide and 3.66x as long as pedicel; pedicel slightly longer than wide (78: 65); funicle segments all longer than wide, F1 1.68x (130: 77), F2 1.42x (124: 87), F3 1.57x (145: 92), F4 1.61x (145: 90), F5 1.78x (152: 85), and F6 1.62x (140: 86) as long as wide; club 2.83x (244: 86) as long as wide.

Mesosoma considerably narrower than head (705:770), 1.58x (1117: 705) as long as wide; mesoscutum 1.5x (711: 474) as wide as long; scutellum 1.2x (503: 415) as long as wide. Fore wing 2.28x (2107: 923) as long as wide; length of marginal vein: stigmal vein: post-marginal vein = 53: 157: 120; hind wing 2.96x (1375: 464) as long as wide, 1.53x (1375: 896) as long as venation.

Metasoma longer than mesosoma (1264: 1117); last sternite 1.2x (353: 293) as wide as long ( Fig. 22 ). Genitalia as in Figs 23, 24 .

Material examined. Holotype female (NFIC-FRI) labeled “ INDIA, Uttarakhand, Dehradun, Karva Paani, coll. 18.xii.2009, Sudhir Singh ex. Phacopteron lentiginosum Buckt. (morph-1) (Homoptera), on Garuga pinnata . Labeled in red, Acc. No. NFIC-FRI-21901”. Paratypes (10Ƥ, 23): 7Ƥ and 13 intact, card mounted; 1Ƥ with wings, legs and antennae removed and mounted on a slide under four cover slips, remaining intact specimen mounted on a card (measurements and photographs of female taken from this specimen); 1Ƥ completely dissected and mounted on a slide under seven cover slips (ovipositor shown in Fig. 8 from this specimen); 13 with left antenna, wings, genital plate and genitalia removed and mounted on a slide under three cover slips, remainder intact and mounted on a card (measurements and photographs of male taken from this specimen); other data same as for the holotype. 1Ƥ: INDIA, Uttarakhand, Dehradun, Shimla Bypass, coll. 30.xi.2008, KP Singh ex. Phacopteron lentiginosum Buckt. on Garuga pinnata . All labeled in green, Acc. No. NFIC-FRI-21901.

Etymology. Named after the host genus.

Distribution. This species is known from Dehradun, Uttarakhand, but is likely to be found in other parts of India, especially the western Ghats (Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu).

Host. Leaf gall-forming psyllid, Phacopteron lentiginosum Buckton (Morph-1) (Homoptera), on Garuga pinnata ( Figs 27, 28 ).

Variation. There is very little variation among females and males except for size as given in the description. The legs are usually mostly pale, but in a few specimens are more reddish; the number of pegs on the middle tibia and tarsal segments are also variable.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 8. Psyllaephagus phacopteron S. Singh, sp. nov., Ƥ: 1, body in dorsal view; 2, body in lateral view; 3, head in frontal view; 4, head in dorsal view; 5, antenna; 6, mesosoma in dorsal view; 7, part of fore wing showing venation; 8, ovipositor.

FIGURES 16 – 24. 16 – 20, Psyllaephagus garuga S. Singh, sp. nov., ♂: 16, head in frontal view; 17, antenna; 18, mesosoma in dorsal view; 19, last sternum; 20, genitalia. 21 – 24, Psyllaephagus phacopteron S. Singh, sp. nov., ♂: 21, antenna; 22, last sternum; 23, genitalia; 24, posterior part of genitalia enlarged.

FIGURES 25 – 34. 25, leaf galls of Phacopteron lentiginosum (morph- 1) on Garuga pinnata; 26, same, some galls enlarged; 27, adult of Phacopteron lentiginosum (morph- 1); 28, mummified nymph of Phacopteron lentiginosum (morph- 1); 29, Psyllaephagus phacopteron S. Singh, sp. nov., Ƥ; 30, bunch of leaf galls of Phacopteron lentiginosum (morph- 2) on Garuga pinnata; 31, same some galls enlarged; 32, adult of Phacopteron lentiginosum (morph- 2); 33, mummified nymph of Phacopteron lentiginosum (morph- 2); 34, Psyllaephagus garuga S. Singh, sp. nov., Ƥ.