Sycophila (Sycophila) lasallei Lotfalizadeh, 2024

Lotfalizadeh, Hossein, Delvare, Gérard, Cruaud, Astrid & Rasplus, Jean-Yves, 2024, Morphological phylogeny and revision of Sycophila and Ficomila (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea, Eurytomidae) associated with Afrotropical fig trees (Moraceae, Ficus), Zootaxa 5401 (1), pp. 1-190 : 102-104

Sycophila (Sycophila) lasallei Lotfalizadeh & Rasplus sp. n.

( Figs 69–70 )

Type material examined. Holotype ♀: Guinea, Bakoré, ex syconia of Ficus glumosa , 2.v.1993, Rasplus J.-Y. leg. Deposited in CBGP. Paratypes: same data as holotype, 8♀. United Republic of Tanzania, Mialo, ex syconia of F. thonningii , 19.iii.1996, Rasplus J.-Y. & Kerdelhué C. leg., 1♀.

Etymology. The species is dedicated to our late friend Dr. John LaSalle for his impressive contribution to the knowledge of Eulophidae and Tanaostigmatidae .

Diagnosis. Female of this species is closely related to S. kestraneura but can be separated by the following characters: funiculars short, at most as long as wide; fu5 quadrate, as long as wide ( Fig. 69B ); petiole longer than broad dorsally ( Figs 70C, D ).

Description of holotype ♀ ( Figs 69–70 ). Length 2.50 mm. Body yellowish ( Fig. 69A ); except ocellar area, propodeum slightly basally, petiole and gaster dorsally dark; antenna mostly yellowish and slightly dark-yellowish dorsally; pronotum uniformly yellowish; fore wing with a dark brown spot below mv, not reaching base of mv; lower margin of mv not obscured by dark brown spot ( Fig. 70F ); gaster bicoloured with dorsal edge dark brown ( Fig. 70C ); body setation whitish, setation of fore wing entirely dark.

Head 1.3× as broad as high [HW 170 & HH 125] ( Fig. 69C ); in dorsal view stout, 1.77× as broad as long [HW 230 & HL 130] ( Fig. 69D ); face and vertex coriaceous with sparse punctures; malar space 0.55× length of eye [ms 46 & EH 84]; malar sulcus distinct, straight ( Fig. 69E ); genal margin regularly curved, edged but not carinate; antennal toruli narrowly separated; interantennal space not raised, not carinate laterally; scrobal depression smooth, reaching the median ocellus, not carinate on margin; POL 2.5× as long as OOL [POL 60 & OOL 24]; temple rounded; 0.34× the eye length (in dorsal view) [TL 32 & EL 95] ( Fig. 69D ); setation oriented downwards on face, outwards on the punctuate frons.

Antenna. Scape not reaching median ocellus, 4.18× as long as broad [SL 115 & SW 28]; fu1 1.5× as long as broad [fu1L 45 & fu1W 30]; distinctly longer than pedicel, not bulging dorsally; funiculars (fu2–fu4) with one row of mps and 2–3 whorls of adpressed long setae; fu2–fu4 slightly longer than broad; fu5 as long as broad ( Fig. 69B ).

Mesosoma weakly arched dorsally, 1.5× as long as wide (165:110), with deep sculpture( Fig. 70A ); pronotum with coarse umbilicate punctures; mesepisternum raised medially, with piliferous sculpture on epicnemium, being closer to anteroventral margin of mesepisternum than to mesocoxa; mesoscutum 0.5× as long as wide (55:110), 0.6 × longer than length of pronotal collar (55:85), densely umbilicate punctures; notauli conspicuous, slightly obliterated by mesoscutum sculpture; prepectus bare, slightly sculptured; mesoscutellum with dense umbilicate punctures laterally and coriaceous sculpture on mesoscutellar disc; mesepimeron transversally strigose; metepimeron subtriangular and areolate with long white hairs; propodeum ( Fig. 70B ) with deep median depression, a smooth median band and a distinct median carina; lateral rows of areolae short (extending at most to half-length of propodeum); basal carina inverted V, truncate mesally, lateral branches relatively straight, distance between lateral carinae about 0.5× width of nucha.

Fore wing with long marginal fringe, distal margin round; dark brown spot only behind mv; basal cell bare or nearly so, mv distinctly enlarged, rounded, lower margin convex, longer than pmv; stv not curved; pmv distinct, longer than stv; ventral side of costal cell sparsely setose, dorsally with row of setae; speculum present; parastigmal bristles absent ( Figs 70E, F ).

Legs. Fore coxa without depression on frontal surface, hind coxa bare basodorsally; fore (30:10) and hind femora (30:10); hind tibia dorsally with 8–12 setae, setae shorter than hind tibia width.

Metasoma. Petiole longer than broad dorsally, ventral transverse carina between petiole and St1 present. Metasoma 1.65× as long as wide (165:100) ( Fig. 70C ), longer than mesosoma, strongly compressed laterally and dorsally angulate ( Fig. 70D ); ventral transverse carina between petiole and St1 absent; petiole in dorsal view longer than wide, as long as or longer than half length of hind coxa; tergites finely sculptured; Gt4 (in lateral view) much as long as Gt3 (at least 1.5× longer), not sinuous posteriorly; Gt5 partly covering Gt6, not sinuous posteriorly; Gt6 with few setae ventrally; ovipositor oriented dorsad but not distinctly upturned ( Fig. 70C ).

Male. Unknown.

Variation. Length 2.3–3.1 mm. Mesosoma and gaster sometimes entirely brown.

Host plants. Ficus glumosa and F. thonningii .

Geographical distribution. Guinea and United Republic of Tanzania.

Figures

FIGURE 69. S. (Sycophila) lasallei sp. n. (♀). A, female in lateral view. B, antenna. C, head in frontal view. D, head in dorsal view. E, head in lateral view. F, mesosoma in lateral view.

FIGURE 70. S. (Sycophila) lasallei sp. n. (♀). A, mesosoma in dorsal view. B, propodeum. C, metasoma in lateral view. D, metasoma in dorsal view. E, fore wing. F, fore wing venation.