Scelio ructo Yoder

Yoder, Matthew J., Valerio, Alejandro A., Polaszek, Andrew, Noort, Simon van, Masner, Lubomir & Johnson, Norman F., 2014, Monograph of the Afrotropical species of Scelio Latreille (Hymenoptera, Platygastridae), egg parasitoids of acridid grasshoppers (Orthoptera, Acrididae), ZooKeys 380, pp. 1-188 : 62-64

Scelio ructo Yoder sp. n. Figures 133-138; Morphbank 37

Description.

Female body length: 3.12-5.21 mm (n=10). Male body length: 3.56-4.66 mm (n=4). Color of pilosity of dorsal head in female: golden to brown. Occipital carina in female: percurrent. Color of pilosity of the frons below the anterior ocellus in female: predominantly golden to brown. Pilosity of eye in female: present. Medial keel on interantennal process: absent. Width of lower gena in lateral view: wide, posterior margin of lower half of gena parallel to posterior orbit. Genal carina: present. Color of genal pilosity: white. Color of scape in female: brown to dark brown throughout. Surface of the pronotal nucha in female: predominantly smooth. Color of pilosity of pronotal shoulder in female: golden to dark brown, concolorous with that of mesoscutum. Sculpture of medial mesoscutum in female: predominantly angular reticulate to rugulose. Color of pilosity of mesoscutum in female: pre dominantly light brown to brown. Notaulus in female: indicated by a row of cells. Notaulus in male: delimited by row of cells. Form of axillular carina in female: small, not particularly expanded or projected from the lateral edge of the mesoscutellum. Pilosity of propodeal nucha: absent. Pilosity of netrion: absent. Surface of mesopleural depression in female: with large smooth patch. Form of ventral margin of villus in female: bent ventrally in posterior, obviously not straight throughout. Color of coxae in female: brown. Color of hind femur: dark brown throughout. Color of hind tibia: yellow at extreme base, otherwise light brown. Fore wing length in female: apex between anterior margin of T5 and posterior margin of T6; apex surpassing posterior margin of T6. Color of metasoma: light reddish brown. Sculpture of laterotergites in female: predominantly smooth. Pilosity of laterotergites in female: absent. Sculpture of medial T1 in female: most prominent elements predominantly longitudinal. Sculpture of medial T2 in female: most prominent elements predominantly longitudinal. Pattern of sculpture on T3-T5 in female: predominantly longitudinally striate. Color of pilosity on lateral T3-T5 in female: predominantly golden to brown. Lateral profile of T6 in female: more or less horizontal. Sculpture of T6 in female: predominantly rugulose to reticulate. Sculpture of lateral metasomal sternal bar in female: predominantly smooth to slightly irregularly rugose. Distribution of felt fields: 2 pairs present (S2, S3).

Diagnosis.

Most similar to Scelio igland which shares the somewhat sparse pilosity of the head and mesonotum (Fig. 135) and is also restricted to Madagascar. Scelio ructo differs from this and all other Afrotropical howardi-group species by the flattened and smoothly rounded sculpture of the mesoscutum (Fig. 135) in combination with the well-impressed notauli and the smooth pronotal nucha and mesopleural depression.

Etymology.

The epithet is used as a noun in apposition derived from the Latin word for belch.

Link to distribution map.

http://hol.osu.edu/map-large.html?id=244974

Material examined.

Holotype, female: MADAGASCAR: Antsiranana Auto. Prov., MA-01-01D-11, Montagne d’Ambre National Park, 12°31'13"S, 49°10'45"E, 1125m, 14. V– 30.V.2001, malaise trap, R. Harin’Hala, CASENT 2042190 (deposited in CASC). Paratypes: MADAGASCAR: 16 females, 4 males, CASENT 2132545-2132546, 2133133, 2133136-2133137, 2133139, 2133275, 2134126, 2134225, 2134244, 2134260, 2134553, 2134579, 2134588-2134589, 8106002 (CASC); CASENT 2043853 (CNCI); CASENT 2133210, 2134554, 8106000 (OSUC). Other material: MADAGASCAR: 1 female, CASENT 2043185 (CASC).

Comments.

The notauli in Scelio ructo are particularly well developed for species of Afrotropical Scelio . The material includes a short series of distinctly smaller but morphologically consistent individuals (CASENT 2133137, 2133136, 2134579, 2134588). The size of the smooth patches on the dorsal metasoma is highly variable. A single larger individual (CASENT 2043185) is identified as Scelio ructo but excluded from the type series. The specimen is missing the large smooth patch of the mesopleuron, and the gena is somewhat broader. Overall, its similar mesoscutal sculpture and general habitus suggests that it represents a morphologically larger outlier. The surface where a third pair of felt fields on S4 would be expected is slightly pinched and raised; nevertheless, lacking the setae we have coded the felt fields as absent on this sclerite. When the structure and function of of the felt fields is discovered this character should be reviewed for Scelio ructo . Females have a slightly wedge-shaped head with a moderate to narrow gena, often with an irregularly developed genal carina.