Trichoteleia jiro Talamas, sp. n.

Talamas, Elijah J., Masner, Lubomir & Johnson, Norman F., 2011, Revision of the Malagasy genus Trichoteleia Kieffer (Hymenoptera, Platygastroidea, Platygastridae), ZooKeys 80, pp. 1-126 : 51-52

Trichoteleia jiro Talamas, sp. n. Figures 4249 –50144– 149306Morphbank 22

Description.

Female body length: 2.35-2.49 mm (n=3). Male body length: 2.32-2.44 mm (n=7). Color of head: orange throughout; pale brown throughout. Central keel of frons: present, ending above interantennal process. Sculpture of medial frons in female: smooth. Sculpture of medial frons in male: smooth. Number of mandibular teeth: three. Basal node on mandible: absent. Sculpture of frons below median ocellus: punctate rugulose throughout; densely punctate throughout. Sculpture of posterior vertex: densely punctate; punctate rugose. Occipital rim: comprised of small to miniscule cells. Sculpture of gena: punctate rugose. Basiconic sensillum on A7: absent.

Color of mesosoma in female: orange throughout. Color of mesosoma in male: pale brown throughout. Sculpture along posterior pronotal sulcus: rugulose. Notaulus: smooth furrow incomplete, reaching suprahumeral sulcus as row of punctures. Sculpture of medial mesoscutum: smooth and sparsely punctate posteriorly, densely punctate and transverely rugulose anteriorly; moderately punctate in posterior half, becoming denser anteriorly. Sculpture of mesoscutellum: smooth with sparse fine punctures throughout; smooth medially, sparsely punctate laterally. Postacetabular sulcus: comprised of small cells. Mesopleural carina: present. Sculpture along ventral half of prespecular sulcus: punctate; coarsely punctate. Sculpture of posterolateral mesepisternum: punctate; coarsely punctate. Sculpture of ventral surface of mesepisternum: finely punctate; smooth. Setation of ventral metapleural area: absent. Setation of metapleural triangle: dense. Sculpture of metapleural triangle: punctate rugose. Posterior margin of metapleuron below propodeal spiracle: with blunt kink near intersection with metapleural sulcus. Color of legs: yellow throughout; pale brown throughout.

Color of metasoma in female: dark brown to black throughout. Color of metasoma in male: dark brown to black throughout. Posterior margin of transverse sulcus on T2: straight. Sublateral tergal carina on T2: absent. Microsculpture on T2: present. Microsculpture on T3: present. Microsculpture on T4: present. Horn on T1 in female: absent. Macrosculpture of T2 in female: longitudinally strigose throughout. Macrosculpture of medial T3 in female: reticulate. Macrosculpture of lateral T3 in female: longitudinally strigose. Macrosculpture of medial T4 in female: longitudinally strigose; weakly rugulose. Macrosculpture of lateral T4 in female: longitudinally strigose. Punctation of T4 in female: sparse throughout. Macrosculpture of T5 in female: absent. Punctation of T5 in female: moderately dense throughout. Shape of T5 in female: width of posterior margin greater than or equal to length. Microscupture on T6 in female: absent. Sculpture of T6 in female: moderately punctate throughout. Macrosculpture of T2 in male: longitudinally strigose. Macrosculpture of medial T3 in male: reticulate. Macrosculpture of lateral T3 in male: longitudinally strigose. Macrosculpture of T4 in male: longitudinally strigose throughout. Punctation of T4 in male: sparse throughout. Macrosculpture of T5 in male: weakly rugulose laterally. Punctation of T5 in male: moderately dense throughout. Sculpture of S2: coarsely punctate throughout. Prominent longitudinal median carina on S2: absent.

Wings: macropterous, apex or forewing extending beyond posterior margin of T3. Color of forewing in female: hyaline throughout. Color of forewing in male: hyaline throughout. Color of hind wing: hyaline throughout. Density of setation in fore wing: reduced posterior to Sc+R in basal half. Density of setation in hind wing: reduced posterior to Sc+R. Length of R1: more than 1.5 times as long as r. M+Cu and RS+M in forewing: spectral.

Diagnosis.

Trichoteleia jiro is similar in habitus to a number of species that have a subspherical head, coarse punctation on the gena and vertex, and spectral veins in the forewing: Trichoteleia afo , Trichoteleia bicolor , Trichoteleia sphaerica and Trichoteleia minima . It may be may separated from them by the combination of a hyaline forewing, absence of horn on T1 in females, and dorsal metapleural area that is entirely to nearly entirely punctate rugose. Females of Trichoteleia jiro may also be recognized by the color pattern of bright orange head and mesosoma and black metasoma. However, females of Trichoteleia afo usually have a similar pattern but with a red head and mesosoma and black metasoma. Thus color should be used only as a supporting character for identification. Males of Trichoteleia jiro have a brown head and mesosoma and dark brown to black metasoma (Fig. 306), serving to distinguish it from the similarly shaped Trichoteleia afo .

Etymology.

The species name jiro, to be treated as a noun in apposition, means “torch” in Malagasy. This epithet refers to the color pattern of females in this species.

Link to Distribution Map.

[http://hol.osu.edu/map-large.html?id=241279]

Material Examined.

Holotype, female: MADAGASCAR: Toamasina Auto. Prov., botanical garden nr. entrance, tropical forest, MA-01-08B-20, Mantadia (Andasibe) National Park, 18°55.58'S 48°24.47'E, 1025m, 16. XI– 23.XI.2001, malaise trap, R. Harin’Hala, CASENT 2043784 (deposited in CASC). Paratypes: MADAGASCAR: 4 females, 8 males, CASENT 2043516, 2043774, 2043785, 2133946-2133947, 2134005, 2136417, 2136587, 2136605 (CASC); OSUC 143329 (CNCI); CASENT 2043393, 2136590 (OSUC).