Ceraphron nzoia, Salden & Peters, 2023

Salden, Tobias & Peters, Ralph S., 2023, Afrotropical Ceraphronoidea (Insecta: Hymenoptera) put back on the map with the description of 88 new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 884 (1), pp. 1-386 : 259-262

Ceraphron nzoia sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:1D7D50FA-1475-437A-8A8C-6A40C9B481D9

Fig. 74

Diagnosis

OOL:POL 3.33; anteromedian projection of the metanoto-propodeo-metapecto-mesopectal complex curved in lateral view with blunt, lighter and emarginated end, exceeding end of mesosoma. Male genitalia: harpe cone-shaped in ventral and dorsal view; harpe/gvc index 0.52; dorsomedial margins of harpes slightly converging and not touching at distodorsal margin of gvc, dorsomedial margin of harpe straight and diverging distolaterally from base to apex, apex of harpe slightly rounded; longest apical setae slightly less than as long as harpe; genitalia weakly sclerotized, almost transparent; gvc width more than three quarters of gvc length; Weber length 3.44 × genital length.

Etymology

The species is named after the Nzoia River which is close to the type locality.

Material examined

Holotype

KENYA • ♂; Western Province, Kakamega Forest; 00°23′6.2 N, 34°33′37.8 E; 1602 m a.s.l.; 16 Jul. 2007; F. Hita Garcia leg.; Transect 11; primary rain forest; Winkler leaf litter extraction; ZFMK; ZFMK- HYM-00036993 .

Description

Male

BODY LENGTH. 0.77 mm.

COLOUR. Head brown, mesosoma brown, metasoma light brown except anterior third lighter; scape and pedicel yellowish, flagellum light brown, gradually darkening from F1 to F9; legs yellowish except pro-and mesocoxa light brown, proximal third of metacoxa light brown; hind wing disc slightly melanized.

ANTENNA. 11-segmented, flagellomeres cylindric; scape 3.4 × as long as pedicel, scape longer than F1 and F2 combined, F1 1.8× as long as wide, F1 1.3× as long as pedicel, F1 1.2× as long as F2, F1 shorter than F7 and F8 combined, F1 shorter than F9, F6 1.4 × as long as wide, F6 shorter than F7 and F8 combined, F6 1.3 × as high as F9; few small multiporous plates on flagellomeres, sensillae on flagellomeres sickle-shaped and shorter than width of flagellomeres.

HEAD. Head width 1.22 × head height; head width 1.73 × interorbital space; maximum eye diameter 1.20 × minimum eye diameter; head height 1.54 × maximum eye diameter. Dorsal margin of occipital carina ventral to dorsal margin of lateral ocellus in lateral view; preoccipital furrow present; preoccipital carina present. OOL:POL:LOL 1.00:0.30:0.50; OOL 2.86 × lateral ocellus diameter. White, thick setae on upper face indistinct; supraclypeal depression present; lateral margin of torulus raised; intertorular carina present; posterolateral processes of gena absent.

MESOSOMA, METASOMA. Mesosoma not compressed laterally. Head width 1.02 × mesosoma width; Weber length 269 µm. Mesoscutum densely setose, setae curved backwards; median mesoscutal sulcus present; median mesoscutal sulcus adjacent to transscutal articulation; interaxillar sulcus present (= scutoscutellar sulcus not adjacent to transscutal articulation), scutoscutellar sulcus concave; dorsal axillar area setose, setae curved backwards; mesoscutellum sparsely setose, setae curved backwards or straight. Mesoscutum width 1.95 × mesoscutellum width; posterior mesoscutal width 1.50 × mesoscutellum width; mesoscutellum length 1.60 × mesoscutellum width; mesoscutellum length 1.07 × posterior mesoscutal width; Weber length 1.10× mesoscutum width; Weber length 1.34× mesoscutellum length.Anteromedian projection of the metanoto-propodeo-metapecto-mesopectal complex curved in lateral view with blunt, lighter and emarginated end, exceeding end of mesosoma; mesometapleural sulcus absent; posterior propodeal projection distinctly short and light in ventrolateral view; posterior mesosomal comb present. Basal transverse carina of petiole (on syntergum) present; at least five basal longitudinal carinae on syntergum; pairs of translucent patches on metasomal syntergum and synsternum.

FORE WING. Missing.

MALE GENITALIA. Genital length 78 µm; Weber length 3.44× genital length; gvc width 44 µm; genital length 1.79× gvc width; gvc width more than three quarters of gvc length; gvc width 1.14 × distal gvc width. Proximodorsal margin of gvc straight; distodorsal margin of gvc descending proximomedially ( Fig. 74C ); proximoventral margin of gvc slightly convex; distoventral margin of gvc descending proximomedially ( Fig. 74A ); ventral area of gvc slightly convex; dorsal area of gvc straight ( Fig. 74B ); proximolateral margin of gvc straight and slightly emarginated ventrally; distolateral margin of gvc descending ventrally ( Fig. 74B ). Harpe cone-shaped in ventral and dorsal view; harpe/gvc index 0.52; lateral articulation site of harpe with gvc not flush ( Fig. 74A, C ); ventral margin of harpe straight, dorsal margin slightly convex ( Fig. 74B ), lateral margin slightly convex, widest point of harpe at lateral articulation site with gvc ( Fig. 74A, C ); dorsomedial margins of harpes slightly converging and not touching at distodorsal margin of gvc, dorsomedial margin of harpe straight and diverging distolaterally from base to apex ( Fig. 74C ), apex of harpe slightly rounded ( Fig. 74A, C ). Harpe with at least one lateral seta restricted to apical third, longest lateral seta less than one third as long as harpe, lateral seta oriented distolaterally and distoventrally; harpe with at least two apical setae, longest apical setae slightly less than as long as harpe, apical setae oriented distolaterally and distoventrally; harpe with at least four median setae, longest median setae one third as long as harpe, median setae oriented distomedially and distoventrally. Aedeagus + gonossiculus more than half as long as harpe, apex of aedeagus + gonossiculus rounded ( Fig. 74A, C ) and as ventral as apex of harpe. Genitalia weakly sclerotized, almost transparent.

Female

Unknown.

Variation

Unknown.

Biology

Host unknown, specimen collected from leaf litter.

Distribution

Afrotropical: Kenya.

Remarks

Comparison with similar species

Ceraphron nzoia sp. nov. can be distinguished from all other treated species by the combination of a high OOL:POL (3.33), weakly sclerotized, almost transparent genitalia, a high Weber length to genital length ratio (3.44), and apical seate on the harpe which are almost as long as the harpe.

Condition of type material

In the holotype, the right F9, both fore wings and the right hind wing are missing. The posterior end of the metasoma is slightly deformed, thus the body length measurement is not precise.

Figures

Fig. 74. Holotype of Ceraphron nzoia sp. nov. (ZFMK-HYM-00036993). A–C. Male genitalia in ventral (A), lateral (B) and dorsal (C) views. D. Habitus in lateral view.