Lakshaphagus arnulfoi, 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 : 195-197

Lakshaphagus arnulfoi sp.nov.

( Figs 491-497; Hab. E 78)

DIAGNOSIS. Female (length about 1.4-1.5mm): mouth margin ( Fig. 492) narrowly pale brown and a slightly curved pale brown line between lower margins of toruli; pedicel orange with a complete dark brown, dorso-lateral stripe; mesoscutum orange, with a slight metallic pale blue and violet sheen; mid and hind tibiae pale orange each with a pair of brown bands; infuscate area on fore wing ( Fig. 497) delimited subapically by a darker curved band; antenna ( Fig. 491) with scape about 1.9X as long as broad, funicle with F5 very slightly longer than broad, segments otherwise transverse or quadrate; scutellum ( Fig. 494) with deep, coarse, elongate polygonally reticulate sculpture that is more or less arranged in whorls, apical area with 6 or 7 pairs of shorter bristle-like setae, 3 pairs of longer scale-like setae and 1 pair of very long scale-like apical setae; ovipositor slightly exserted, the exserted part slightly longer than mid tibial spur. Male: unknown.

Female (holotype): length, including ovipositor, 1.35mm; excluding ovipositor, 1.22mm (CPD).

Head orange; frontovertex with a slight metallic pale blue and violet sheen; scrobes and interantennal prominence with a slight brassy sheen; temple and posterior part of gena with a slight metallic pale green and violet sheen; mouth margin narrowly pale brown and a slightly curved pale brown line between lower margins of toruli; frontovertex with numerous, short, fairly inconspicuous, pale brown setae; mandible pale orange, proximally dark brown, teeth amber; palpi white; antenna with radicle pale orange, dark brown at apex; scape orange with ventral margin narrowly dark brown; pedicel orange with a complete dark brown, dorso-lateral stripe; funicle with F1-F4 dark brown, F5-F6 pale orange, each with a narrow pale brown stripe on inner surface; clava dark brown; pronotum orange, neck slightly dusky, posterior margin with conspicuous dark brown setae; mesoscutum orange, with a slight metallic pale blue and violet sheen; axilla and scutellum orange, more or less matt, but scutellum with weak coppery and brassy reflections; setae on dorsum of thorax dark brown or black; tegula with a slight coppery sheen, largely dusky orange but apex orange-brown; metanotum orange with a slight coppery sheen; mesopleuron orange with a slight brassy sheen; prosternum orange mixed brown; mesosternum orange mixed dark brown; fore and hind coxae white, mid coxae very pale orange; fore femur white in proximal three-fifths, apex pale orange, tibia white at extreme base, otherwise pale orange but for a faint, interrupted pale brown subbasal band, tarsus pale orange; mid femur white in proximal three-fifths, apex pale orange, tibia mostly pale orange, but with knee narrowly dark brown, a small white basal patch, an oblique Y-shaped dark brown mark surrounding white basal patch and a dark brown dorsal spot at about half way along dorsal surface, spur pale orange, tarsus pale orange; hind femur pale orange, tibia pale orange with knee narrowly dark brown and immediately below this a small white area and remnants of a pair of brown rings on dorsal margin at about 0.25X and 0.55X along its length; fore wing ( Fig. 497) with extreme base infuscate otherwise basal cell hyaline to level with proximal part of parastigma, area connecting apices of postmarginal and stigmal veins and apex of fore wing hyaline ( Fig. 496), wing otherwise infuscate with infuscate area delimited subapically by a darker curved band, hind wing hyaline, venation pale orange with marginal vein dusky; propodeum orange with a weak brassy lustre, side with a very weak violet and pale blue sheen; gaster generally orange, TVI-TVIII pale orange, dark brown patches present on TI, sides of TII- TII and apex of syntergum, darker areas on TI with a strong violet and metallic green sheen, TII- TIII with a metallic green sheen and apex of syntergum violet, side and venter of gaster generally with coppery, violet, brassy and metallic green reflections, apex of outer plate of ovipositor with a metallic dark green and violet sheen; gonostylus pale orange.

Head ( Fig. 492) about 7.1X as wide as frontovertex, in profile about 1.4X as high as deep, frontovertex hardly convex from occipital margin to top of scrobes then angled at about 90° at top of scrobes and virtually straight towards mouth with interantennal prominence hardly protuberant; occipital margin sharp, not carinate; ocelli forming an angle of about 58°; frontovertex becoming narrower towards transfacial ridge with narrowest point slightly less than half way from anterior ocellus to transfacial ridge; frontovertex quite shiny, in ocellar area with shallow, fine, polygonally reticulate sculpture of mesh size subequal to diameter of eye facet, elsewhere frontovertex completely smooth; temple and gena with very shallow, fine, longitudinally elongate, polygonally reticulate sculpture, area immediately below eye completely smooth; scrobes quite smooth; narrowest point between eye and transfacial ridge about 1.7X diameter of anterior ocellus; scrobes moderately deep, broadly ∩-shaped, sharply margined dorsally and laterally; interantennal prominence triangular and dorsally acute, with similar sculpture to that in ocellar area; antenna as in Fig. 491; scape strongly broadened and flattened, about 1.9X as long as broad, dorsal margin weakly convex; funicle with F1-F4 smallest, subequal with F1-F2 very slightly longer than broad and F3-F4 very slightly transverse, F5-F6 largest, subequal with F5 very slightly longer than broad and F6 quadrate, linear sensilla present only on F5 and F6; clava slightly enlarged, about 1.25X as wide as F6 and nearly as long as funicle, outer suture slightly oblique, sensory area slightly enlarged but not much more than 0.1X as long as clava, apex hardly obliquely truncate; eye very slightly overreaching occipital margin, clothed in sparse fairly inconspicuous setae, each about as long as diameter of facet; malar sulcus absent; clypeal margin weakly emarginate, medially virtually straight; mandible with 2 acute lower teeth and a short, rounded upper tooth. Relative measurements: HW 96.5, HH 89, FVL 70, FV 13.5, POL 10, OOL 0.5, OCL 4, AOL 10, EL 67, EW 50, MS 45, SL 44, SW 23.5.

Thorax with pronotum exposed behind head; pronotum with similar sculpture to that in ocellar area; mesoscutum almost completely smooth, but with extremely shallow, poorlydefined, transversely elongate, polygonally reticulate sculpture; axilla with moderately deep, fine, polygonally reticulate sculpture of much smaller mesh than that in ocellar area; scutellum with conspicuously deeper, coarser, elongate polygonally reticulate sculpture that is more or less arranged in whorls, apical area with 6 or 7 pairs of shorter bristle-like setae, 3 pairs of longer scale-like setae and 1 pair of very long scale-like apical setae; visible part of mesoscutum about 2.2X as broad as long; scutellum about 1.15X as broad as long; mid tibial spur hardly shorter than basitarsus; hind femur about 3.5X as long as broad; fore wing with venation and setation as in Figs 496, 497; costal cell without any setae dorsally; metapleuron completely hidden; propodeum ( Fig. 494) medially about 0.17X as long as scutellum, virtually smooth. Relative measurements: FWL 87.5, FWW 34; HWL 68, HWW 18.5.

Gaster with hypopygium ( Fig. 495) reaching about 0.7X; last tergite about 0.85X as long as mid tibia, with apex broadly angular; ovipositor ( Fig. 493) exserted, the exserted part about 1.2X as long as mid tibial spur or about 0.35X mid tibia. Relative measurements: OL 88, GL 28 [MT 64].

Variation. Females vary in overall length from 1.35-1.48mm, the mouth margin and area between the toruli may be completely pale orange and the head varies from 6.5-7.1X as wide as the frontovertex

Male. Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION. USA (Florida), Costa Rica.

HOSTS. Unknown.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.

Type material. Holotype E: COSTA RICA, Puntarenas, Res. Priv. Karen Mogensen, 9°52’N 85°03’W, 19-20.ii.2009 (J.S. Noyes) . Paratypes: USA, 1E, Florida, Monroe Co., Big Torch Key , xi.1985 - ii.1986 (S. & J. Peck) . Holotype and paratype in NHMUK .

COMMENTS. A specimen from Belize may belong to arnulfoi but it lacks brown rings on the mid and hind tibia and has a slightly narrower frontovertex than that described for arnulfoi .

The species is named in honour of Sr Arnulfo Quiros, a friend and one the hosts at Cerro Escondido, Reserva Privada Karen Mogensen where the holotype was collected.