Cheiloneurus nintra, Noyes, 2023

Noyes, John Stuart, 2023, ENCYRTIDAE OF COSTA RICA (HYMENOPTERA: CHALCIDOIDEA), 4 Subfamily Encyrtinae: tribes Arrhenophagini, Habrolepidini, Cerapterocerini, Cheiloneurini, Trechnitini, Cercobelini, Polaszekiini, Protyndarichoidini, Gahaniellini and Syrphophagini (part), mainly primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids of Coccoidea and Psylloidea (Hemiptera), Taxonomic Monographs on Neotropical Hymenoptera (Oxford, England) 2 (11), pp. 1-921 : 283-285

Cheiloneurus nintra sp.nov.

( Figs 701-707; Hab. E 106,107)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.0- 1.4mm): body generally orange, mesoscutum posteriorly usually with a pale brown band, gaster mostly dark brown, paler areas with a weak metallic sheen, darker areas with a moderate to strong metallic sheen; antenna ( Fig. 703) with scape pale orange; pedicel brown; funicle with F1-F4 brown to orange-brown, F5-F6 pale orange-brown to orange; clava brown, sometimes proximal segments of clava pale orange; posterior half of mesoscutum with dense silvery setae; fore and hind coxae white, mid coxa pale orange; legs mostly white to pale orange with some brown on mid and hind legs; fore wing ( Fig. 705) mostly infuscate with basal cell mostly hyaline, a small hyaline area at apex of venation which continues more broadly around wing apex and then more narrowly to opposite margin; head ( Fig. 707) about 6.7X as wide as frontovertex, in facial view hardly broader than long, subcircular, genae evenly slightly curved, more strongly curved near mouth margin; frontovertex with about 2 setae medially above scrobes; eye separated from scrobe by about 2X diameter of anterior ocellus, area between eye and scrobe virtually completely smooth, scrobes shallow and weakly margined; interantennal prominence with about 12 inconspicuous setae and dorsally acute; mandible tridentate; antenna ( Fig. 703) with scape about 5.8X as long as broad; F1 slightly longer than broad, remaining segments subquadrate or transverse; linear sensilla on F4-F6; clava 3-segmented, very nearly as long as funicle, sensory area enlarged, extending about 0.6X along ventral surface of clava giving it a strong, obliquely truncate appearance; head width slightly greater than length of flagellum; mesoscutum ( Fig. 702) anteriorly with coarse longitudinally elongate, striate-reticulate sculpture, posteriorly with polygonally reticulate sculpture; scutellum with a distinct, apical tuft of setae; wings fully developed; fore wing ( Fig. 705) about 2.6X as long as broad; parastigma clearly downcurved; costal cell dorsally naked, ventrally with a complete line of setae; area below proximal part of parastigma with a line of about 6-12 paler setae that curves towards fore wing base, sometimes a setae outside this; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a naked, hyaline area that hardly extends into disc ( Fig. 701); seta at apex of postmarginal vein about 0.6X as long as marginal vein; mid tibial spur about as long as basitarsus; propodeum ( Fig. 702) with about 24 setae adjacent to spiracle, these not extending down side; syntergum about 0.8X as long as mid tibia; ovipositor ( Fig. 706) about 4X gonostylus or about as long as mid tibia; gonostylus about 0.8X as long as mid tibial spur; ovipositor not exserted. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length 1.35mm ( CPD) .

Head generally pale orange; occiput with a small, dark brown triangular area immediately above foramen; temple and gena pale brown; mouth margin ( Fig. 707) dark brown; ocellar area with purple and blue reflections, frontovertex anteriorly to ocelli with a weak metallic green sheen, purple about half-way between anterior ocellus and top of scrobes then brassy to top of scrobes; temple with a metallic green sheen, coppery along posterior; gena with a metallic green sheen with some blue, brassy and coppery areas anteriorly; area between eye and scrobe with a weak purple and brassy sheen; interantennal prominence with a weak purple and brassy sheen; frontovertex with inconspicuous pale brown setae along inner eye margins; a line of similar setae below eye; interantennal prominence clothed with sparse, brown setae; maxillary palpus very pale orange; antenna ( Fig. 703) with radicle pale orange, apex dark brown; scape pale orange; pedicel brown; F1 brown, F2-F4 slightly paler orange-brown, F5 pale orange mixed pale orange-brown ventrally, F6 pale orange, clava brown; pronotum orange, side pale orange; prosternum brown; mesoscutum orange with a transverse, median pale brown band with a very weak metallic blue sheen and purple reflections, orange areas with relatively sparse, brown setae, brownish area with relatively dense, silvery setae; tegula orange with apex orange-brown; axilla and scutellum pale orange, clothed with golden brown and dark brown setae, subapical tuft on scutellum black; metanotum orange; mesopleuron pale orange with a weak brassy and purple sheen, posterior two-fifths brown with a weak green, purple and brassy sheen; mesosternum pale orange; fore coxa white, leg otherwise pale orange; mid coxa pale orange, leg otherwise mostly pale orange, but mid tibia dark brown at base and with an external brown stripe for about three fifths its length; hind coxa white; hind femur mostly pale orange but dorsal margin narrowly brown in apical half and apex brown, hind tibia pale orange-brown with apices pale orange, tarsus pale orange; fore wing ( Fig. 705) mostly infuscate, hyaline towards base, along anterior margin distad of venation and at apex; submarginal vein mostly yellow, venation otherwise brown; propodeum pale orange medially and on side, brown laterally with a weak metallic blue and purple sheen, about 15 recumbent, silvery setae in a group inside spiracle and a single erect seta laterally outside it; gaster brown with purple, blue, green and brassy reflections, Gt1 with a green, blue and coppery sheen, syntergum mostly pale orange, apex brown, side and venter pale dusky orange, side with a weak metallic green and coppery sheen, apex of outer plates brown; gonostylus pale orange.

Head ( Fig. 707) about 6.7X as wide as frontovertex, in profile 1.5X as high as deep, anteriorly quite straight from top of scrobes to mouth margin, interantennal prominence slightly protuberant; occipital margin sharp, not carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 40°; frontovertex quite shiny, with shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size a little smaller than diameter of facet; narrowest point between eye and scrobe slightly more than 2X diameter of anterior ocellus and virtually completely smooth; temple quite smooth, but with very shallow, irregular, elongate, sculpture; gena with slightly deeper more regular, polygonally reticulate sculpture; scrobes shallow, Λ-shaped, meeting, weakly margined; interantennal prominence dorsally acute and with shallow, polygonally reticulate sculpture; antenna as in Fig. 703; scape hardly broadened and flattened, about 5.8X as long as broad; F1 very slightly longer than broad, F2 quadrate, F3-F6 transverse, segments larger and broader distad; clava slightly broadened, very nearly as long as funicle, sutures oblique, sensory area enlarged, extending ventrally about 0.6X length of clava, apex strongly obliquely truncate; eye reaching occipital margin, virtually naked, but clothed in sparse, inconspicuous, fine, short setae, each much shorter than diameter of facet; inner eye margins converging slightly anteriorly; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin virtually straight medially; mandible with three acute teeth; apical segment of maxillary palpus not enlarged, about as long as radicle. Relative measurements: HW 67, HH 66, FV 10, POL 7, OOL 0, OCL 5.5, AOL 12.5, EL 48.5, EW 39, MS 29, SL 37.5, SW 6.5.

Thorax ( Fig. 702) with pronotum short and hardly exposed behind head, about as long as mesoscutum,pronotum with polygonally reticulate sculpture that is deeper than that on frontovertex; mesoscutum in anterior half with longitudinally elongate striate-reticulate sculpture, posterior half with polygonally reticulate sculpture of similar depth; axilla and scutellum with polygonally reticulate sculpture of similar depth to that on pronotum, but slightly coarser, especially so on scutellum where it is laterally longitudinally elongate on sides; visible part of mesoscutum about 2.7X as broad as long; scutellum about as long as broad with a distinct subapical tuft, setae mostly about half as long as scutellum; mid tibia without a distinct external carina; hind femur about 5.0X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 701, 705; costal cell naked dorsally at apex; apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins connected by a distinct, naked, hyaline streak ( Fig. 701); propodeum medially about 0.17X as long as scutellum and virtually smooth, lateral setae conspicuous. Relative measurements: FWL 61, FWW 23; HWL 54.5, HWW 14.5.

Gaster with hypopygium reaching about half-way to apex; syntergum about 0.9X as long as mid tibia, with apex very weakly angular; ovipositor not exserted.

Paratype. Funicle with linear sensilla present only on F4-F6; gaster without “gland-like” structures on Gt1 or Gt5; hypopygium Fig. 704; ovipisitor Fig. 706. Relative measurements: OL 32, GL 8 [MT 34].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 0.97-1.42mm, the antenna may be relatively paler than in the holotype so that the proximal segment, and sometimes even the middle segment, of the clava is pale orange with the remainder very pale brown, the temple may be pale orange, the pale brown band on the mesoscutum may be absent or it may be broader, extending over almost the whole of the posterior half of the mesoscutum (the band of silvery setae is always present) and the gaster may have the side and venter pale orange;

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown, but very likely to be a parasitoid of Dryinidae ( Hymenoptera ) parasitizing leaf hoppers ( Hemiptera ).

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, San José, Zurqui de Moravia , 1600m, v.1995 (P. Hanson) . Paratypes: COSTA RICA, 1E, Guanacaste, Maritza ( ACG), 700m, MT/YPT, 20.i-24.ii.1996 (J.S. Noyes); 1E, Guanacaste, BN Diriá, Ret. Alr. Torre Control de Incendio , LN238550 358650, 600-700m, #66659, xii.2001 - i.2002 (I. Jiménez); 2E , Heredia, Santo Domingo, INBio Parque , 9°59’N 84°06’W, 14.ii.2015 (J.S. Noyes); 1E , San José, San Antonio de Escazu, 2000m, ix-x.1996 (C. Flores, P. Hanson); 7E, San José, Zurqui de Moravia , 1600m, v.1994, vi-vii.1994, v.1995 and vi.1995 (P. Hanson); 2E, San José, 26km N San Isidro, 9´30’N 83°43’W, 2100m, ii-v.1991 and ii-v.1992 (P. Hanson); 1E , Cartago, PN Tapanti-Macizo de la Muerte, Torre ICE #28, 1700m, #61063, vii-viii.2000 ( D. Rubí ); 1E , Puntarenas, Res. Priv. Karen Mogensen , 9°52’N 85°03’W, 305m, 23-24.ii.2013 (J.S. Noyes); 1E, Puntarenas, Buenos Aires, Pila Savanas, LS 336200 573560, 1900m, #52793, MT, #52793, v-vi.1999 (R. Villalobos); 1E, Puntarenas, Est. Altamira, Send a Casa Coca, LS 331750 574400, 1700m, ii.2002 (C. Hansson, D. Rubí, J. Azofeifa ) . Holotype in MZUCR, paratypes in NHMUK and MZUCR .

COMMENTS. Cheiloneurus nintra is very close to angulatus De Santis from Argentina and olmii Guerrieri & Viggiani (see Guerrieri & Viggiani, 2005) from the Galapagos Islands, all three species having a very similar body colouration, general habitus and pattern of infuscation on the fore wing. It can be separated from both species by having a line of dark setae below the parastigma that connects to a line of similar setae along the cubital vein, whereas in angulatus and olmii there is a distinct group of about 12-15 pale setae below the parastigma which may continue as a single line along the cubital vein. Further to this, the frontovertex in nintra it is at most about 0.16X head width whereas in angulatus and olmii it is about 0.20X head width. In nintra the mesoscutum is orange with a brown band that extends into the anterior half of the mesoscutum, whereas in angulatus the brown band is limited to the posterior one third and in olmii the whole of the posterior half of the mesoscutum is completely dark brown with a distinct metallic sheen. Cheiloneurus nintra further differs from olmii in having the mesopleuron anteriorly pale orange with the posterior two-fifths brown, whereas in olmii the mesopleuron is uniform dark orange-brown. Cheiloneurus nintra is also quite similar to gonatopodis Perkins from the Old World tropics and subtropics and known as a parasitoid of Dryinidae attacking plant hoppers. It differs from gonatopodis in having the mouth margin dark brown and slightly metallic, whereas in gonatopodis it is completely orange. In addition, the fore wing of gonatopodis has two or three lines of pale setae below the parastigma that do not extend towards the wing base along the cubital vein