Odontacolus markadicus Veenakumari

A. Valerio, Alejandro, Austin, Andrew D., Masner, Lubomir & Johnson, Norman F., 2013, Systematics of Old World Odontacolus Kieffer s. l. (Hymenoptera, Platygastridae s. l.): parasitoids of spider eggs, ZooKeys 314, pp. 1-151 : 50-52

Odontacolus markadicus Veenakumari Figures 54, 56, 215-220, 305-306, 312, 316, 331-332; Morphbank 77

Description.

Female. Body length: 1.15 - 1.72 mm (n=15). Antenna color: completely yellow. Body color: head, mesosoma, T1 (except horn), anterior portion of T2 yellow, metasoma otherwise dark brown. Coxae color: yellow. Leg color (excluding coxae): yellow. Fore wing color: completely hyaline.

Head. Size of compound eye: approximately 1/2 × height of head. Head shape in lateral view: lower head elongate and broad at mouth, head appearing elongate and somewhat thin. Sculpture of antennal scrobe: smooth throughout; weakly coriaceous throughout. Surface of torular triangle: slightly bulging. Development of central keel on frons: present, elongate (equal to or greater than 1/3 × height of frons), but not reaching anterior ocellus. Sculpture on upper frons below anterior ocellus: with sparse, transverse costae mixed with weak, dense granulae. Sculpture of malar space: coriaceous throughout, without fan-like striae. Furrow at lateral portion of antennal scrobe: absent. Mesal surface of vertex: flat to weakly convex. Size of lateral ocelli: normal. Distance between lateral ocellus and occipital carina: 0.5 –1.2× maximum ocellar diameter. Lagrimal: absent or minute. Length of OOL: less than or equal to 1/3 × width of ocellus. Sculpture of vertex: granulate. Sculpture of occipital carina: largely simple, at most with sparse weak crenulae medially. Distance from occipital carina to orbital carina: slightly greater than width of occipital carina. Shape of occipital carina: simply arcuate medially. Sculpture of occiput: with weak, small granulae. Sculpture of gena: granulose.

Mesosoma. Dorsal mesosoma in lateral view: convex. Sculpture of pronotal cervical area: with small (at most as large as crenulae on anterior edge of mesoscutum), well-defined foveae. Sculpture of pronotal lateral area: upper 1/3 granulose, lower 1/3 with transverse foveae, otherwise smooth. Netrion: present, smooth, well developed, sub-obovate. Notaulus: present, simple. Length of notaulus: approximately less than or equal to 1/3 of length of mesoscutum. Width of notaulus: distinctly widened; narrow. Sculpture of mesoscutum: weakly granulose. Sculpture of mesoscutellum: granulose. Mesoscutellar profile: elevated, anterior margin higher than posterior. Mesoscutellar shape: flat, not depressed. Lateral propodeal area: densely transversely carinate. Shape of propodeal anterior spine: elongate, narrow, apex rounded. Sculpture of propodeum between anterior spines: smooth or largely smooth. Sculpture of ventral half of mesepisternum: smooth or nearly so. Sculpture of upper 1/4 of mesopleuron: densely longitudinally costate across half width. Metapleural sculpture: mainly smooth, lower third sparsely longitudinally carinate.

Wings. Stigmal vein: present, elongate, narrow. Campaniform sensilla at distal area of stigmal vein: present.

Metasoma. Shape of T1 horn: narrow, short. Sculpture of upper portion of T1 horn: longitudinally carinate. Sculpture of posterior portion of T1 horn: largely smooth, with sparse longitudinal carinae. Lateral carinae on T2: present, well-defined. Sculpture of T2: finely longitudinally costate, granulate laterally. Sculpture of T3: anterior two-thirds weakly longitudinally costate, posterior third weakly coriaceous mesally, otherwise densely granulose. Sculpture of S3-S6: S3 weakly granulose, S4-S6 weakly, finely coriaceous. S2 anterior carina: present, cristate, uninterrupted.

Male. Body length: 1.45 mm (n=1). Body color: completely yellow. Sculpture of antennal scrobe: with weak coriaceous sculpture except dorsal area with sinuate, transverse carina below anterior ocellus. Shape and size of anterior ocellus: large, oblong. Vertex posterior area sculpture: densely granulate. Occipital carina dorsal area: present, cristate. Netrion: well-defined, suboval. Sculpture of mesepisternum: coriaceous. Sculpture of pronotal lateral areas: with few, straight, fine transvers carinae. Length of fore wing stigmal vein: conspicuously elongate. Angle of stigmal vein in relation to anterior margin of fore wing: at an angle of approximately 45°. Sculpture of T2: with weak longitudinal carinae mixed with weak coriaceous sculpture.

Diagnosis.

This species is very similar to Odontacolus bosei and Odontacolus mot . Odontacolus markadicus may be distinguished from Odontacolus bosei bythe yellow body color and the lateral occipital carina which is mainly smooth; in Odontacolus bosei by the body is completely dark brown and the lateral portion of the occipital carina is conspicuously crenulate. In turn, Odontacolus markadicus may be separated from Odontacolus mot by its smaller size (1.74 mm or less vs. 1.92 mm), the different sculpture on the upper frons (absent or fine and straight carinae as opposed to broad, sinuate carinae), and by the even distribution of setae on the metasoma.

Link to distribution map.

78

Type material.

Not examined: Holotype, female, INDIA: Karnataka: Bengaluru: Gandhi Krishi Vigyan Kendra, 29.xii.2009 at an elevation of 910m (13°2'3"N, 77°35'18"E) emerged from spider eggs (ICAR); Paratypes: 8 females, data same as holotype (ICAR, INCP); 1 male Karnataka: Bengaluru: Adugodi, 23.vi. 2011 (12°56'49"N, 77°36'37"E) (ICAR).

Material examined.

28 females, 1 male: BRUNEI: 1 female, OSUC 321894 (BMNH). INDIA: 15 females, OSUC 238769-238770, 238772, 239190-239192, 239195-239197, 239199-239201 (CNCI); OSUC 238771, 239198, 239202 (OSUC). MALAYSIA: 3 females, OSUC 238767, 239209, 239213 (CNCI). THAILAND: 7 females, 1 male, OSUC 238803-238805, 239212 (CNCI); OSUC 261831, 261852, 268732(OSUC); OSUC 321806 (WINC). VIETNAM: 2 females, OSUC 239211 (CNCI); OSUC 248896 (ROME).

Comments.

We were unable to obtain any of the type series, and so our interpretation of Odontacolus markadicus is based on comparision of the additional material (listed above) with the images and description in Veenakumari and Mohanraj (2011) as well as images kindly sent to us by our colleague Dr Rajmohana K.

When taking all of the available material into account some variation is evident in the females of this species: the antennal clava can be completely yellow or the distal half of the clava slightly darker, and the vertex and mesoscutum vary from completely yellow to slightly honey yellow in color. In addition, the specimens: OSUC 239209, OSUC 239211- 239213, OSUC 238767, OSUC 238803-238805, OSUC 248896, OSUC 250858, OSUC 261831, OSUC 261852, OSUC 268732, OSUC 321806 and OSUC 321894 differ from the remaining material by having the body completely yellow, but otherwise they match Odontacolus markadicus in every respect.