Aleiodes curvicauda, Butcher, Buntika Areekul, Smith, M. Alex, Sharkey, Mike J. & Quicke, Donald L. J., 2012

Butcher, Buntika Areekul, Smith, M. Alex, Sharkey, Mike J. & Quicke, Donald L. J., 2012, A turbo-taxonomic study of Thai Aleiodes (Aleiodes) and Aleiodes (Arcaleiodes) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Rogadinae) based largely on COI barcoded specimens, with rapid descriptions of 179 new species, Zootaxa 3457, pp. 1-232 : 84-85

Aleiodes curvicauda sp. nov.

( Fig. 57 )

Holotype ♀, Thailand, Nan, Doi Phu Kha NP, km 33.8 to 34.4, 1640–1685m, 28–30.xii.1991, I. J. Kitching & A. M. Cotton (no sequence data) ( BMNH).

Body length [corrected] 5.9 mm, fore wing length 4.4 mm and antenna length 4.8 mm.

Antenna with 31 flagellomeres. Terminal flagellomere acuminate. Penultimate flagellomeres rather moniliform. Median flagellomeres approcimately 2.5 x longer than wide. Occipital carina nearly complete mediodorsally though very faint and possibly truly absent in the middle, evenly rounded, joing hypostomal carina ventrally. Speculum absent. Midlongitudinal propodeal carina complete. Fore wing vein 2-CU1 2.4 x 1-CU1. Apex of fore wing subbasal cell evenly setose. Fore wing vein 3-SR 1.8 x vein r. Fore wing vein 2-SR+M 1.2 x vein r. Fore wing vein SR1 3.15 x vein 3-SR. Hind wing vein M+CU 1.7 x 1-M. Hind wing subbasal cell evenly setose. Hind wing vein m-cu represented by long, straight, unpigmented fold, interstitial. Apex of hind tibia without comb of specially modified adpressed setae medially. Claws with pecten of 4 or 5 well-separated, stout teeth extending beyond basal lobe but leaving larger gap to claw proper. Basal lobes of 1 st tergite hardly protuding, not concave posteriorly. Midlongitudinal carina of 3 rd tergite hardly more distinct than other longitudinal striation of tergite which extends approxiately 0.75 distance to posterior margin medially and less far laterally.

Etymology. Latin curvatus meaning curved and ‘cauda’ meaning tail in reference to almost unique, strongly upcurved ovipositor.

Notes. The only known Thai species with a distinctly upturned ovipositor. A. aligarhensis Qadri (1933) , from India also has an upcurved ovipositor, similar occipital carina, similarly coloured antennae also with 31 flagellomeres, large ocelli, and complete propodeal carina, but differs in having a large speculum, the mestaoma entirely ochreous yellow, 2 nd tergite longer than wide and 3 rd tergite only striate on basal 0.4. It is keyed out twice because of the possible uncertainty about its occipital carina.

Figures

FIGURE 57. A. curvicauda sp. nov. A, habitus; B, face; C, head, lateral view; D, head, dorsal view; E, metasoma, lateral view; F, metasoma; G, propodeum.