Ophion dombroskii Schwarzfeld

Schwarzfeld, Marla D. & Sperling, Felix A. H., 2014, Species delimitation using morphology, morphometrics, and molecules: definition of the Ophionscutellaris Thomson species group, with descriptions of six new species (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae), ZooKeys 462, pp. 59-114 : 91-93

Taxon classification Animalia Hymenoptera Ichneumonidae

Ophion dombroskii Schwarzfeld sp. n. Figures 10g, 11g; Plate 7

Type material.

Holotype ♀ (MS13975, DNA6548, GenBank KF594760, KF615971, KF616341) CAN: SK: nr. Newton L., 49.301 -107.764, 20 v 2011, UV trap, J. Dombroskie (CNC).

Etymology.

This species is named for Jason Dombroskie, who was kind enough to collect the only known specimen of this species on an otherwise rainy and utterly unsuccessful moth-collecting trip.

Diagnosis.

Wing L: 10.8 mm, Flag: 51; The head and thorax of this species are almost entirely black, making this species easily recognizable. It also has unusually short antennal segments, widely separated ocelli and a long, narrow scutellum.

Description.

Head: Eyes slightly convergent in frontal view; stemmaticum slightly raised, sulci surrounding stemmaticum complete; IOD/OL: 1.20, OOD/OL: 0.45; occipital carina rounded, OC/OL: 1.20; temple receding, approximately equal to width of eye in lateral view; clypeus 0.5 × as high as apical width, coriaceous, punctures irregularly sized (coarse to very small) and sparsely, irregularly distributed, denser on sides, CH/CAW: 0.50; face with medium-sized punctures, approximately separated by their diameter and connected with strong microreticulation, smaller on sides of face; FW/FH: 1.34; antennae short, 51 flagellomeres, F1: 2.7, F20: 1.1; MS/MW: 0.6; GI/MW: 0.8.

Mesosoma: Mesoscutum coriaceous, evenly punctate with minute punctures, separated by several times their diameter; mesopleuron and metapleuron strongly coriaceous, evenly, coarsely punctate with punctures separated by their diameter or less; mesopleuron above mesopleural fovea subpolished, punctures minute, separated by 2 -3 × their diameter; epicnemial carina pleurosternal angle obtuse; scutellum with lateral carina strong along anterior half, SL/SW: 1.8.

Propodeum: ATC strong and strongly arched along ASu (so anterior margin of ASu strongly convex), weak to obsolete along AD; PTC mostly obsolete, represented by wrinkles, forming small crests where intersects with MLC, strong along AJC, especially strong at propodeal apophysis; MLC obsolete, faintly represented by wrinkles along ASu and even more indistinctly along AP; LLC present as a wrinkle along AJC, otherwise absent; PC strong, not connected to spiracle; spiracular area sloping, coriaceous with numerous small punctures; posterior area weakly wrinkled and punctate, more wrinkled apically.

Wings: Wing L=10.8 mm, CI: 0.49, AI: 1.39, SDI: 1.15, ICI: 0.83; wings with veins dark brown, stigma light brown, fenestra not extending below prestigma, ramellus short.

Legs: CL/CW: 1.5, FL/FW: 7.2, MT1/MT2: 3; MTS: 0.85.

Colour: Head: black; orbits, temple, vertex, mandibles, palps and clypeus except for extreme base reddish-orange; Mesosoma: black; mesocutum (except margins and base of notauli), scutellum, anterior margin and an indistinct area in the centre of mesopleuron, apical margin of propodeum, apical half of coxae and legs reddish-orange; mesepimeron reddish-orange ventrally and yellowish dorsally; metasoma reddish-orange; ovipositor sheath same colour as metasoma.

Seasonality.

The one collection record is from May 20.

Remarks.

This species is unusual because of its extensive black markings. The unusually short antennae and black markings indicate that this species may be diurnally active ( Gauld 1980). Gauld (1985) mentions a few undescribed deserticolous species with short antennae and quadrate central flagellomeres; we have not seen these specimens, so it is unknown whether this species should be considered among them.