Aivalykus kseniae, Belokobylskij & Ku, 2023

Belokobylskij, Sergey A. & Ku, Deokseo, 2023, New descriptions and new records of the braconid parasitoids subfamilies Doryctinae and Rhyssalinae (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) in the fauna of South Korea, ZooKeys 1138, pp. 49-88 : 49

Aivalykus kseniae sp. nov.

Figs 1 , 2

Type material.

Holotype: female, "Korea (GB), Ian yeomul san [Ian-myeon, Yeomul-ri San] 39-4, Sangji-[shi], 36°32'46.9"N, 128°07'46.6"E, 2020.V.24-VI.12, Coll. S.S. Kim, The 5th National Ecosystem Survey" (NIBR).

Paratype: 1 female, "Korea (GB), Cheonbu3-gil, Buk-myeon, Ulleung-gun, V.23-VI.7.2017 (Malaise trap), Ku Deokseo" (SMNE).

Comparative diagnosis.

This new species is similar to Aivalykus nitidus Belokobylskij & Chen, 2002 ( Belokobylskij and Chen 2002), but differs by having the vertex with a distinct aciculation (very finely aciculate in A. nitidus ), five carinae on the prescutellar depression (only a single median carina in A. nitidus ), second medial abscissa (2-SR+M) short, recurrent vein (m-cu) weakly antefurcal, ~ 8.0 × longer than second medial abscissa (2-SR+M) (long, strongly antefurcal, in 1.6-2.0 × longer in A. nitidus ), brachial cell closed weakly before recurrent vein (distinctly before it in A. nitidus ), setae on the dorsal margin of the hind tibia short, 0.3-0.5 × as long as the maximum width of the tibia (long, 0.7-0.8 × as long as the width of the tibia in A. nitidus ), and apical segments of antenna dark brown to black (three apical segments white in A. nitidus ).

Description.

Female. Body length 2.2-2.5 mm; fore wing length 2.0-2.2 mm; ovipositor sheath length 1.7-2.0 mm.

Head. Head width (dorsal view) 1.5-1.6 × its median length, 1.1 × width of mesoscutum. Head behind eye (dorsal view) weakly convex or subparallel in anterior 1/2, roundly narrowed in posterior 1/2; transverse diameter of eye 1.6-1.8 × length of temple. Ocelli small, arranged in equilateral triangle with base 1.1-1.2 × its sides. POL 1.1-1.2 × Od, 0.5-0.6 × OOL. Eye glabrous, 1.1-1.2 × as high as broad. Malar space 0.4-0.5 × height of eye, almost equal to basal width of mandible. Face width 0.9-1.0 × height of eye and almost equal to height of face and clypeus combined. Malar suture absent. Clypeus high, 1.0-1.2 × as wide as high. Clypeal suture shallow, distinct laterally and almost absent upper medially. Hypoclypeal depression round, its transverse width 0.4-0.5 × distance from edge of depression to eye, 0.3-0.4 × width of face. Occipital carina reduced below, not fused with hypostomal carina.

Antenna. Antenna slender, almost filiform, 18-21-segmented, weakly longer than body. Scape 1.2 × longer than its maximum width. First segment of flagellum not flattened, weakly curved, 3.8-4.0 × longer than its apical width, 0.7-0.8 × longer than second segment. Penultimate segment 4.0-4.5 × longer than wide, 0.8-0.9 × as long as first segment, as long as apical segment; the latter almost obtuse apically.

Mesosoma. Mesosoma 1.7-1.8 × longer than high. Neck of prothorax short. Pronotal carina distinct. Mesoscutum highly and almost perpendicularly elevated above pronotum (lateral view), ~ 1.1 × wider than its medial length (dorsal view). Notauli deep in anterior 1/2, shallow in posterior 1/2, anteriorly distinctly crenulate. Prescutellar depression (scutal sulcus) deep, with five complete or sometimes partly incomplete longitudinal carinae, smooth between carinae, 0.3 × as long as weakly convex scutellum. Subalar depression shallow, wide, distinctly obliquely striate. Precoxal sulcus very shallow and narrow, finely longitudinally aciculate or smooth, connected with prepectal carina anteriorly, running along ~ 1/2 of lower part of mesopleuron. Metanotum almost without tooth.

Wings. Fore wing 3.0-3.3 × longer than its maximum width. Radial vein (r) arising almost from middle of pterostigma. Radial (marginal) cell weakly shortened. Metacarp (1-R1) almost as long as pterostigma. First radial abscissa (r) perpendicular to pterostigma, 0.7-0.9 × as long as maximum width of pterostigma, 0.5-0.6 × as long as first radiomedial vein (2-SR). Second radial abscissa (3-SR+SR1) distinctly evenly curved, 6.6-7.3 × longer than first abscissa (r), 3.8-3.9 × longer than first radiomedial vein (2-SR). Discoidal (first discal) cell ~ 2.0 × longer than wide. Recurrent vein (m-cu) weakly antefurcal, 4.0-6.0 × longer than second abscissa of medial vein (2-SR+M), 0.6-0.7 × as long as first radiomedial vein (2-SR). Brachial (first subdiscal) cell narrow, gently closing apically weakly before recurrent vein (m-cu). Distance from nervulus (cu-a) to basal vein (1-M) 0.5-1.0 × nervulus (cu-a) length. In hind wing medial (basal) cell closed antero-distally. Recurrent vein (m-cu) absent, or sometimes present, but short and strongly desclerotised.

Legs. Hind femur 3.8-4.0 × longer than wide. Hind tarsus 0.75-0.80 × as long as hind tibia. Hind basitarsus thickened, thicker than following segments, 0.7-0.8 × as long as second-fifth segments combined. Second segment 0.4 × as long as basitarsus, 1.1-1.3 × longer than fifth segments (without pretarsus).

Metasoma. Metasoma 0.9-1.0 × as long as head and mesosoma combined. First tergite without spiracular tubercles, spiracles situated on basal 1/3 of tergite, distinctly and linearly widened from base to apex. Maximum width of first tergite 1.7-2.0 × its minimum width, length 1.10-1.15 × its apical width, 1.3-1.5 × length of propodeum. Second tergite without sublateral oblique depressions. Suture between second and third tergites indistinct. Medial length of second and third tergites combined 1.1-1.2 × basal width of second tergite, 0.8 × their maximum width. Ovipositor sheath 0.8 × as long as body, 1.4-1.6 × longer than metasoma, 2.0-2.2 × longer than mesosoma, 0.8-0.9 × as long as fore wing.

Sculpture and pubescence. Vertex almost entirely aciculate; frons mainly smooth with fine aciculation posteriorly or widely and finely aciculate; temple smooth; face mainly smooth with sparse punctation, finely aciculate submedially on narrow stripes and below. Sides of pronotum mainly smooth but striate marginally. Mesoscutum distinctly and densely coriaceous, sometimes sculpture situated in irregular transverse dense striae anteriorly; with two middle and strongly convergent posteriorly longitudinal carina in posterior 1/2. Scutellum almost entirely smooth. but finely coriaceous laterally. Mesopleuron and metapleuron mainly smooth. Propodeum mainly smooth, with coarse and short rugulosity along median carinae in basal 2/3, with distinctly delineated by carinae, short and relatively wide smooth areola in posterior 1/3 of propodeum. Hind coxa and femur smooth. First metasomal tergite with distinct, complete, and closely situated dorsal carinae, entirely densely and distinctly striate. Remaining tergites completely smooth. Hind tibia on dorsal surface with rather sparse and semi-erect pale setae, length of these setae 0.3-0.5 × maximum width of hind tibia.

Colour. Head and anterior 1/2 of mesosoma pale reddish brown to yellowish brown; posterior 1/2 of mesosoma and first metasomal tergite dark brown to black, remaining part of metasoma reddish brown with yellowish margins. Antenna dark brown to black (including subapical and apical segments), three basal segments yellowish brown. Palpi pale yellow. Legs brownish yellow or yellow. Ovipositor sheath black. Wings faintly infuscate; pterostigma brown, but pale yellow in its basal quarter.

Male. Unknown.

Etymology.

Named after the daughter of the first author, Ksenia.

Distribution.

Korean Peninsula.

Figures

Figure 1. Aivalykus kseniae sp. nov. (female, holotype) A habitus, lateral view B head, front view C head, dorsal view D head, lateral view E antenna F mesosoma, dorsal view G head and mesosoma, lateral view H hind leg.

Figure 2. Aivalykus kseniae sp. nov. (female, holotype) A wings B metasoma, dorsal view C metasoma, lateral view.