Protodacnusa nigra, Mao, Juan, He, Jun-Hua & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2015

Mao, Juan, He, Jun-Hua & Chen, Xue-Xin, 2015, The discovery of the genus Protodacnusa Griffiths, 1964 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Alysiinae) in China, with descriptions of six new species, Zootaxa 3990 (3), pp. 355-368 : 366-368

Protodacnusa nigra sp. nov.

( Fig. 6 )

Holotype, ♀, China, Qinghai Prov., Mengyuan, Fenglikou, 28.VI.1990, No. 910226 ( ZJUH).

Description. Female. Body 2.5 mm long; fore wing length 2.7 mm.

Head. Antenna shorter than body, 27-segmented. First flagellar segment 1.9 × as long as its apical width, 0.9 × as long as second segment. Penultimate segment 2.0 × as long as wide. Head width 1.7 × its median length, 2.0 × as broad as mesoscutum between tegulae. Vertex smooth, with very sparse erect and rather short setae. Frons weakly concave, smooth. Temple smooth, with short setae, extremely swollen behind eyes in dorsal view ( Fig. 6 B). Transverse diameter of eye 0.7 × as long as temple in lateral view. Ocelli small, in triangle with base equal to its sides. POL: OD: OOL=2.3: 1.0: 2.0. Eye glabrous, 1.9 × as high as broad. Malar space extremely short. Face smooth, with weak longitudinal carina. Occipital carina complete absent. Mandible expanded, with three distinctly developed teeth, apical width 1.4 × its basal width, first tooth of mandible strongly expanded, semicircle, second tooth long and pointed ( Fig. 6 E), third tooth pointed and upcurved ( Fig. 6 C). Palpi shorter than height of head.

Mesosoma. 1.4 × as long as high in lateral view. Pronope small. Sides of pronotum smooth. Mesoscutum smooth and with dense setae. Notauli distinct, extending to anterior half of the mesoscutum ( Fig. 6 H). Prescutellar depression deep, with five longitudinal carinae. Scutellum mostly smooth, punctate laterally. Mesopleuron punctate, but smooth in median part. Precoxal sulcus narrow and crenulate ( Fig. 6 F). Metanotum without median tooth. Metapleuron sparse setae. Propodeum almost smooth, only with punctures laterally, median carina absent, but lateral tubercles present.

Wings. Fore wing 2.3 × as long as its maximum width. Pterostigma parallel-sided, 8.0 × as long as wide. Vein r arising from basal third of pterostigma, its length longer than width of pterostigma. First discal cell of fore wing narrow, not wider than high. Vein 1-R1 long, 0.6 × as long as pterostigma, marginal cell ending near the tip of wing. Vein SR1+3-SR evenly curved, bent as in Fig. 6 D. Vein m-cu antefurcal. Subdiscal cell closed, vein CU1b developed ( Fig. 6 D).

Legs. Hind coxa almost smooth, very sparsely punctate. Hind femur 5.0 × as long as its maximum width. Hind tibia as long as its tarsus in length. Hind basitarsus as long as tarsomeres 2–3 combined.

Metasoma. First tergite subtriangular, smooth, with densely long setae, dorsope absent, with small spiracular tubercles, its length 1.3 × as long as its apical width ( Fig. 6 G). Second tergite and further tergites smooth, with one row of setae along their hind margin. Hypopygium acute apically. Ovipositor sheath very short, concealed ( Fig. 6 A).

Colour. Ground colour of body completely black. Palpi black. Mandible dark brownish and apically black. Wings hyaline, pterostigma and veins opaque brownish-greyish.

Male. Unknown.

Host. Unknown.

Diagnosis. This species differs distinctly from all the known species of Protodacnusa by the completely black body.

Distribution. China (Qinghai).

Etymology. The name refers to the black body.

Figures

FIGURE 6. Protodacnusa nigra sp. nov., ♀, holotype. A. habitus, lateral aspect; B. head, dorsal aspect; C. head, frontal aspect; D. fore wing; E. mandible, lateral aspect; F. mesosoma, lateral aspect; G. metasoma, dorsal aspect; H. mesonotum, dorsal aspect. Scale bar = 5 mm.