Austrocotesia renei Valerio & Whitfield

Valerio, A. A. & Whitfield, J. B., 2005, Two new species of the genus Austrocotesia Austin & Dangerfield (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from the Andean region of South America, Zootaxa 888, pp. 1-11 : 6-9

Austrocotesia renei Valerio & Whitfield n. sp.

( Figs. 2 A–2F)

Female. Body length = 2.8 mm.

Body color: mainly yellow; mid antenna flagellomeres whitish as is most of metasoma (except dorsal area) as well as placodes in flagellomeres, remainder antenna (except remainder scape and pedicel from lateroexternal area, this area is very narrow in lateral view) brownish yellow as ocellar area, toruli carinae, anterior lateral area of lunulae, metanotum and axilla through metanotum, propodeal carinae and anterior margin as well as lateral carinae of first metasomal tergum and lateral edge of propleuron, metasomal terga (except first tergum), ovipositor sheaths, hind leg tarsomeres (except basal 1/4 of basitarsomere) and tarsal spurs; compound eyes silver; ocelli yellowish; remainder of body yellow; wings generally hyaline with a very faint brownish tinge, fore wing veins brownish yellow except base of vein M+CU yellow; hind wing vein R1 brownish yellow but remainder of veins more strongly yellowish in coloration.

Head. Head height/width = 1.21; compound eye height/width = 1.36; tentorial pit distance/distance tentorial pit to compound eye = 3; clypeus width/height = 1.75; vertex width/distance between anterior ocellus and edge of torulus = 2.82; first flagellomere length/width = 3.16; length first flagellomere/length of second flagellomere = 1; length of first flagellomere/length of third flagellomere = 1; distal flagellomere length/penultimate flagellomere length = 1.4; distal flagellomere length/width = 2.33; malar space height/ basal width of mandible = 0.86; ocell­ocular distance/lateral ocelli distance = 2.4.

Clypeus and face with very fine punctate sculpturing and setosity that is also present in remainder of head; temple and ocell­ocular space glabrous as well as postocciput; ocelli rather small.

Wings. Fore wing length = 2.75 mm; 1CUa length/2Cub length = 0.6; 1M length/ mcu length = 1.63; pterostigma length/height = 1.86. Hind wing: 1M length/2M length = 2.5; 1M length/M+CU length = 1.66; length r­m/length Cua = 0.92; 1RSa length/2r­m = 1.22.

Mesosoma. Propleuron with fine and inconspicuous punctation throughout its length; pronotal lateral area anteriorly with two small costulae, remainder nitid; pronotum otherwise with dense, fine punctate sculpturing which is less conspicuous next to scutellar groove; axilla through mesonotum with two or three carinae in upper 1/3, remainder nitid; scutellar groove with 7 well defined costulae, medial one 2x as large as lateral ones; scutellum with fine punctate sculpturing throughout, lateral areas nitid; lunulae nitid except at anterior edge with a few projecting ridges that are short and narrow; mid distal area of metanotum with one large smooth costula; axilla through metanotum nitid except posteriorly with a series of short and narrow projecting ridges; propodeum with very well defined areola as well as anterior section of medial longitudinal carina, costulae absent on anterior 1/3, transverse carinae very short but well defined, remainder of propodeum devoid of sculpturing; mesopleuron with sternaulus nitid except anterior edge with a well defined carina, dorsal edge with small and well defined scrobiculate sculpturing, remain­ der of mesopleuron nitid; metapleuron with medial pit present and with transverse ridges across its width, dorsal edge with a few transverse ridges, remainder of metapleuron nitid.

Legs. Hind femur length/width = 3.55; hind tibia length/hind femur length = 1.28. Tarsal claws pectinate; fore telotarsus simple and not modified; hind coxae with dorsal face of distal 1/3 with a few transverse carinae.

Metasoma. First tergum length/distal width = 3.77; second tergum length/distal width = 0.61; third tergum length/distal width = 0.56; ovipositor> 1.26x length of hind tibia; ovipositor sheaths> 0.75x as long as hind tibia. First metasomal tergite with confused ridged sculpturing, mid length of tergite dorsally raised with two longitudinal ridges that do not meet medially, distal 1/4 of tergite almost nitid; second tergite strongly triangular in shape and nitid; remainder of terga nitid; hypopygium slightly divided distally.

Material examined. Holotype “ Ecuador, Pichincha, Santo Domingo, 16 Km SE Tinalandia, 680 m, 15/vi/1976.” Holotype deposited in CNC.

Comments. This species is in many characters similar to A. croizati , but consistently differs in the characters mentioned in the key, and females of the two species appear quite distinct. The holotype of A. renei comes from the same locality as we have reported two males of A. croizati from, suggesting that males of the two species might be confused, but the sculpturing characters suggest otherwise. It remains a possibility that the Ecuadorian (but not Colombian) males described under A. croizati actually belong to A. renei , however. We have searched through large amounts of malaise trap material from the survey of Hymenoptera being conducted by M. J. Sharkey and B. V. Brown (among others) in Colombia for further males to associate, but have been unable to locate more specimens at this time.

Etymology. Gender, masculine. This species is named in memory of Rene Fonseca (OTS 13­01), "Un excelente individuo y un muy buen amigo. Todos te extrañamos."

Figures

FIGURE 2. Austrocotesia renei n. sp. habitus (A), mesosoma dorsal view (B), distal flagellomeres (C), anterior metasomal tergites (D), mesopleuron (E), wings (F).