Apanteles incurvus Liu & Chen

Liu, Zhen, He, Jun-Hua & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2014, The grandiculus- and metacarpalis - group of the genus Apanteles Foerster, 1862 (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) from China, with descriptions of eight new species, Zootaxa 3765 (5), pp. 435-457 : 447-450

Apanteles incurvus Liu & Chen , sp. n.

Figure 7

Description. Female. Body length ca. 2.1 mm, fore wing length ca. 2.1 mm.

Head. Transverse in dorsal view, slightly broad behind eyes, 1.9× as wide as long (21.5:11.5) and almost as wide as mesoscutum. Eye in dorsal view 1.4× as long as temple (6.2:4.5). Temple pubescent and indistinctly shallowly punctate, not constricted. Face slightly elongated, 1.3× as high as wide, relatively shiny, slightly convex with a narrow short indistinct sulcus medially, shallowly indistinctly punctate, less pubescent, inner margin of eyes subparallel. Apical margin of clypeus straight. Posterior tangent to the anterior ocellus touching the posterior pair, ocelli longer than diameter of hind ocelli, POL:OD:OOL=3.0:1.5:4.0. Antenna shorter than body length, penultimate antennomere subcubic, ultimate antennomere cordiform.

Mesosoma. Length to breadth and height 31.0:20.0:21.7. Disc of mesonotum relatively dull, finely punctate, interspaces no smaller than diameter of punctures. Scutellar sulcus straight, relatively broad with carinae in between. Scutellum less polished with relative shallow, sparse punctures all over. Posterior margin of postscutellum projecting at middle into propodeum. Propodeum shiny, uneven with trace of punctures anteriorly, two indistinct short arms reached out from orifice, slightly depressed medially. Mesopleuron highly polished, its anterior half with relatively indistinct and sparser hairy punctures of even size.

Legs. Spines on outer side of hind tibia distinctly of two kinds: thick and thin, thick spines numerous. Spurs of hind tibia of equal size, 2/5 length of basitarsus. Basitarsus of hind leg almost as long as tarsal segments 2–4.

Wings. Pterostigma 2.9× as long as its widest part. Vein 1-R1 (metacarp) 1.2× longer than pterostigma, it is 4.6× as long as its distance from the apex of the marginal cell. Vein r arising from middle of pterostigma, slightly shorter than width of pterostigma, vein r slightly longer than vein 2-SR, distinctly angled at their meeting, vein 2-M almost 3/4 length of 2-SR. 1st discal cell 1.4× wider than high. First submarginal cell of hind wing trapezoidal, 2.3× wider than high. Vein cu-a strongly curved and oblique inwards. Vein 1-1A relatively short, almost 1/3 of fold of vannal lobe.

Metasoma. 1.4× as long as thorax (43.0:31.0). T1 narrowed to apex, basal width 1.8× hind width, and short, slightly longer than basal width (8.0: 7.0). Concave at basal two-fifth, turned-over part shiny, with shallow obsolescent punctures. T2 smooth, triangular, very small as A. pelopea , posterior width of T2 only slightly longer than distance between posterior corner of triangle and lateral margin of gaster, 1.8× wider than long in the middle. T3 1.4× as long as T2 (7.0:5.0). Tergites after T2 relatively shiny, smooth, almost pubescent posteriorly. Hypopygium not longer than apex of abdomen. Ovipositor sheath almost as long as hind basitarsus, relatively thin.

Colour. Body black except tergites posterior to T2 with whitish hind. Palpi and spurs pale yellow to whitish. Tegulae dark. Labrum, mandible reddish brown. Legs black, fore leg yellow, mid and hind tibiae and tarsi more or less fumous. Wing membrane hyaline, vein 1-R1, C+SC+R and pterostigma brownish, r, 2-SR, 2-M and other veins light brown.

Male. Unknown.

Host. Unknown.

Material examined. Holotype: ♀, Qiuqianjialinchang, Mt. Liupan, Jingyuan, Ningxia, 2008. VII.8, Liu Jingxian, No. 200905498.

Distribution. China (Ningxia) ( Fig. 12 ).

Etymology. The specific name “ incurvus ” is a Latin adjective, referring to vein cu-a of hind wing strongly curved inwardly.

Remarks. This species is similar to A. pelopea Nixon, 1973 mainly in terms of small T 2 in metacarpalis group but can be obviously separated from the latter in having metacarp long, 4.6× as long as its distance from apex of marginal cell (the latter distinctly shorter than its distance from apex of marginal cell); 1st discal cell 1.4× wider than high (the latter 1.2×); and ovipositor sheath in lateral view not wide and truncate apically as A. pelopea .

Figures

FIGURE 7. Apanteles incurvus Liu & Chen, sp. n. a mesonotum and scutellum, dorsal view b head, dorsal view c head, frontal view d propodeum and T 1 – 3, dorsal view e hind wing f habitus, dorsal view g antenna h fore wing. Scale line = 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 12. Distribution map of metacarpalis - group of Apanteles species in China. •: Apanteles corvinus Reinhard, 1880; ♦: Apanteles cosmopterygivorus Liu & Chen, sp. n.; ♥: Apanteles dumosus Liu & Chen, sp. n.; ˔: Apanteles incurvus Liu & Chen, sp. n.; ˑ: Apanteles malleus Liu & Chen, sp. n.; ■: Apanteles metacarpalis (Thomson, 1895); •: Apanteles pelopea Nixon, 1973; ★: Apanteles transtergum Liu & Chen, sp. n.