Schizoprymnus torreadoroides van Achterberg and Ng, 2009

Achterberg, C. van, Hosaka, T., Ng, Y. F. & Ghani, Idris B. A., 2009, The braconid parasitoids (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) associated with seeds of Dipterocarpaceae in Malaysia, Journal of Natural History 43 (11 - 12), pp. 635-686 : 652-654

Schizoprymnus torreadoroides van Achterberg and Ng , sp. nov.

( Figure 4A–D )

Holotype

Female, length of body 4.9 mm, length of forewing 4.0 mm.

Head

Antenna with 30 segments and segments just after middle of antenna 1.2–1.3 times as long as wide, scapus coarsely punctate, third segment slightly longer than fourth segment, third, fourth and penultimate segments 3.8, 3.6 and 1.3 times their maximum width, respectively; length of maxillary palp 0.6 times height of head, with three basal segments comparatively short and widened; median length of face (up to level of antennal sockets) 0.5 times its minimum width; head in dorsal view 2.1 times wider than long (medially or at level of eyes); face weakly convex, coarsely punctate but dorsally irregularly punctate-rugose; clypeus 1.4 times wider than high, ventrally slightly surpassing upper level of upper condyli of mandibles ( Figure 4C ), angulate laterally and medially with small tooth, its surface rather coarsely punctate, with narrow to medium-sized smooth interspaces and ventrally with some more or less transverse striae; area between antennal sockets with a strong lamella, connected to a complete median carina of frons ( Figure 4C ); frons distinctly concave and largely smooth medially, anterior ocellus situated slightly lower than lateral ocelli, laterally convex and coarsely reticulate-punctate; vertex coarsely and densely punctate; stemmaticum with a few punctures; OOL: diameter of posterior ocellus: POL 11: 4: 8; in dorsal view length of eye 1.1 times length of temple; temples subparallel-sided behind eyes, posteriorly gradually narrowed and coarsely punctate; occipital carina complete, medium-sized dorsally and slightly arched, ventrally coarsely developed; length of malar space 1.1 times basal width of mandible and 0.5 times height of eye; occipital flange wide, 0.6 times as long as malar space.

Mesosoma

Length of mesosoma 1.3 times its height; side of pronotum finely punctate dorsally, medially scarcely crenulate, posterodorsally and anteriorly with a few coarse rugae and remainder finely punctate; propleuron flattened and rugulose; laterally mesoscutum partly reticulate-punctate; mesosternum flattened, largely smooth (paratype; covered by glue in holotype), below precoxal sulcus with an elongate subtriangular depression; mesosternal sulcus rather wide and distinctly crenulate; mesopleuron largely moderately punctate, with precoxal sulcus complete and coarsely crenulated-punctate and only anteriorly bordered by a coarse prepectal carina; metapleuron very coarsely reticulate and with conspicuous long greyish setae; lateral lobes of mesoscutum finely punctate and middle lobe rather coarsely densely punctate and with a weak median ridge anteriorly; notauli deep and coarsely crenulate; scutellar sulcus smooth except for a strong median carina and some shallow depressions; scutellum moderately convex and rather sparsely punctate, but coarsely punctate-crenulate and with carina laterally; side of scutellum coarsely crenulate; dorsal face of propodeum very short (about as long as metanotum) and coarsely reticulate, with short median carina connected to a coarse arched transverse carina, posterior face nearly perpendicular to dorsal face and largely smooth (only laterally punctate), with a rather large blunt protruding lamella laterally.

Wings

Forewing. r: 3-SR+SR1: 2-SR 5: 26: 8; 1-R1 0.9 times 1.1 times as long as pterostigma and 1.6 times distance from it to apex of wing; 2-R1 0.3 times vein 1-R1; cu-a inclivous; 1-CU1: 2-CU1 1: 6; 1-M straight; basal half of wing densely setose but distinctly less densely setose than apical half of wing.

Hind wing. cu-a slightly reclivous and its surroundings largely glabrous; M+CU: 1-M: 1r-m 2: 2: 1; marginal cell strongly narrowed apically.

Legs

Hind coxa densely punctulate and laterodorsally with fine oblique striae and medially largely smooth; tarsal claws angled and with rather acute lobe; lengths of femur, tibia and basitarsus of hind leg 3.6, 7.7 and 4.2 times their maximum width, respectively; hind tibia slender, much narrower than hind femur; hind tibial spurs 0.4 and 0.5 times as long as hind basitarsus; second to fourth segments of fore tarsus slender compared to robust segments of hind tarsus.

Metasoma

Carapace coarsely longitudinally rugose-reticulate, ovoid and strongly convex (similar to Schizoprymnus mesocaudus ), 1.3 times as long as its maximum width in dorsal view, subparallel-sided subposteriorly and apically subtruncate ( Figure 4A ); laterope very deep; carapace distinctly transversely emarginate medioapically, with lamella distinctly protruding and narrow anteriorly ( Figure 4D ); first and second sutures present but dorsally shallowly impressed; in lateral view carapace 1.8 times longer than its maximum height and apically subtruncate (cf. Figure 3G ); ovipositor sheath 1.20 times as long as forewing, 3.3 times hind tibia (but part protruding beyond apex of metasoma about 2.9 times hind tibia) and 2.3 times metasoma.

Colour

Black; palpi, base of fore and middle tibiae narrowly and basal quarter of hind tibia pale yellowish; antenna, tegulae, remainder of legs, carapace ventrally, parastigma, pterostigma and veins largely dark brown; apical half of forewing slightly infuscate and remainder subhyaline.

Variation

Length of forewing 3.3–4.4 mm, and of body 4.3–5.3 mm; antenna of female with 29 (3) or 30 (1) segments, of male 27 (1) or 28 (1); length of ovipositor sheath 1.03–1.20 times length of forewing. Males have the head slightly less transverse (1.95 times wider than long); apically the lamella of the metasoma usually with a wider incision and the apical corners rounded.

Biology

Endoparasitoids of coleopterous larvae in seeds of Dipterocarpaceae ( Shorea acuminata Dyer and Shorea leprosula Miq. ). Emergence from later aborted seeds suggests Schizoprymnus torreadoroides probably to be a parasitoid of larvae of Alcidodes dipterocarpi and/or Alcidodes humeralis ( Figure 1A ).

Distribution

West Malaysia.

Notes

The most commonly encountered species of the genus Schizoprymnus Foerster. It can be recognized by the relatively long ovipositor sheath (about as long as the body or slightly shorter), the nearly square clypeus protruding below the upper level of condyli of mandibles and the slender hind tibia. Runs in the key by Papp (1993) to Schizoprymnus torreador Papp, 1991 , from Sabah, but the latter differs by the higher number of antennal segments (female: 36), the more slender carapace (1.7 times as wide in dorsal view), the comparatively deep and circular incision of the third tergite of the female and apically the lamella of the metasoma wide and its apical corners rounded.

Material examined

Holotype female, ‘‘W. Malaysia, N. Sembilan Pasoh Forest Reserve , 9 February 2002. From Shorea acuminata seeds, Y.F. Ng and Hosaka’ ’, ‘‘B 29’’, ‘‘Collected (195690)’’ ( UKM) . Paratypes (seven females and five males): three females, same data as holotype, ‘‘B 22, 33 or 51’’ ( UKM, RMNH) ; one female, id., but 10 october 2002, B 26 and collection no. 435018 ( UKM) ; one male, id., but 13 February 2002, B 28, and collection no. 324995 ( RMNH) ; one male, id., but 26 August 2002, B 23 and no. 195690 ( RMNH) ; one female, id., but 16 September 2002, B 29 and collection no. 435018 ( RMNH) ; one female, id., but 14 February 2002, B 24 and no. 384310 ( UKM) ; one female, id., but 25 February 2002, B 25 and collection no. 195690 ( UKM) ; one male, id., but 10 October 2002, C 49 and collection no. 324995 ( UKM) ; one male, id., but 6 February 2002, C 50, and collection no. 195690 ( RMNH) ; one male, id., but 22 January 2002, from Shorea leprosula , C 48 and collection no. 295767 ( RMNH) .

Figures

Figure 1. (A) Occurrence of Schizoprymnus spp. A character indicates aborted timing of an individual wasp examined. M, Schizoprymnus mesocaudus; T, Schizoprymnus torreadoroides; ¤, Nanophyes shoreae (Coleoptera: Apionidae); m, Nanophyinae sp. (Coleoptera: Apionidae); e, Alcidodes dipterocarpi (Coleoptera: Curculionidae); Δ, Alcidodes humeralis; *, Andrioplecta shoreae (Lepidotera: Tortricidae); MAC, Shorea macroptera; PAU, Shorea pauciflora; LEPI, Shorea lepidota; PAR, Shorea parvifolia; ACU, Shorea acuminata; MAX, Shorea maxwelliana; LEPR, Shorea leprosula. The number following the tree code stands for flowering event; 1 indicates Flowering 2001, 2 indicates Flowering 2002. For example, ACU2 stands for Shorea acuminata in Flowering 2002.

Figure 3. Schizoprymnus mesocaudus, female, holotype, but (B) and (D) of paratype. (A) Wings; (B) outer hind claw; (C) hind leg; (D) scutellum, dorsal aspect; (E) head, lateral aspect; (F) head, anterior aspect; (G) metasoma, lateral aspect; (H) hind tarsus; (I) metasoma, dorsal aspect; (J) apex of third tergite, dorsoventral aspect. Scale bars: 1.0×(A, C, G, I); 3.3×(B); 1.3×(D–F, J); 1.4×(H).

Figure 4. (A–D) Schizoprymnus torreadorides, female, holotype; (E–H) Bracon singaporensis, female, Malaysia, Pasoh Forest; (I–K) Bracon rugulifer, female, holotype. (A) Metasoma, dorsal aspect; (B) scutellum, dorsal aspect; (C, G, I) head, anterior aspect; (D) apex of third tergite, dorsoventral aspect; (E) part of forewing; (F, K) head, dorsal aspect; (H, J) head, lateral aspect. Scale bars: 1.0×(A–D); 1.3×(E, K); 1.8×(F–H); 1.4×(I, J).