Tropobracon shafeei Haider

Haider, A. A., Ahmad, Z. & Shujauddin, 2004, Taxonomic studies on Indian Tropobracon Cameron (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Braconinae), with descriptions of two new species, Zootaxa 663, pp. 1-8 : 5-7

Tropobracon shafeei Haider sp. nov.

( Figs. 7–16 )

Female. Dark brown; head brown, except stemmaticum, frons and tips of mandible black; ocelli transparent; eyes grey; wings hyaline, venations brown, pterostigma dark brown; middle portion of each metasomal tergites light brown; ovipositor brown.

Head. Antenna 49 segmented; length of third antennal segment 1.8 times fourth segment; third, fourth and penultimate segments 4.5, 2.5 and 2.0 times their widths respectively; apical segment 2.5 times their width ( Fig.14 ); length of maxillary palpi 0.9 times height of head; vertex and frons granulate; length of eye 2.3 times of temple in dorsal view ( Fig. 9 ); temple roundly narrowed posteriorly; AOL: POL: OD: OOL = 3: 3: 3: 9; clypeus almost flat ( Fig. 11 ) and ventral margin protruding; face smooth medio­ventrally and some what finely transversally rugulose behind antannal sockets; length of malar space 1.3 times basal width of mandible.

Mesosoma. Length of mesosoma 1.8 times its height; episternal scrobe linear and deep; mesoscutum smooth, only medio­posteriorly granulate with a short carina, medioanteriorly with a short groove; scutellar sulcus wide with a longitudinal carinae ( Fig. 10 ); scutellum with distinct pit antero­medially; metapleuron finely puntulate with long whitish setae; propodeum without median carina with coarsely granulate.

Wings. Fore wing ( Fig. 7 ) vein r: 3­SR: SR1 = 5: 7: 35; cu­a interstitial; 2­SR: 3­SR: r­m = 11: 7: 8; hind wing ( Fig. 8 ) vein 1r­m straight, free from 1­SC+R and about 2.0 times longer than vein 2­SC + R; 1­SC + R about as wide as 1r­m.

Legs. Hind coxae granulate; length of femur, tibia and basitarsus of hind leg 3.33, 10.0 and 3.75 times their widths respectively; length of spurs of hind tibia 0.4 times of hind basitarsus ( Fig. 13 ).

Metasoma. Length of first tergite 0.86 times its apical width, its surface behind united dorsal carina coarsely reticulate, its lateral areas wide and partially smooth; grooves of second tergite narrow, coarsely crenulate, not meeting each other and not reaching second metasomal suture, resulting without a distinct triangular area ( Fig. 12 ); second and third tergites distinctly and rather finely rugose; four­six tergites granulate; length of ovipositor sheaths 0.37 times of fore wing ( Fig. 16 ).

Length. 4.57 mm., fore wing 3.67 mm.

Male. Similar to female except: Mostly yellowish brown in colour; antennae 55 segmented, and body length 5.0 mm.

Host. Unknown.

Type material. Holotype, female, INDIA: West Bengal, Nadia, Kalyani, 20.xi.1999, A.A. Haider ( ZDAMU); paratypes: 1 female, 2 males, with same data as holotype ( ZDAMU).

Etymology. T. shafeei is dedicated to Late Dr. S. Adam Shafee from Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh ( India) for his valuable contribution to parasitic Hymenoptera .

Distribution. India (West Bengal).

Remarks. The new species Tropobracon shafeei Haider sp.nov. is closely related to T. luteus Cameron. However , it differs from T. luteus in having (i) face smooth medio­ventrally and somewhat finely transversally rugulose behind antennal sockets (in T. luteus face granulate), (ii) scutellum medio­anteriorly with a distinct pit (in T. luteus scutellum without pit medio­anteriorly), (iii) metapleuron finely punctulate (in T. luteus metapleuron finely rugose), (iv) propodeum coarsely granulate (in T. luteus propodeum coarsely and densely reticulate­rugose, but with a narrow part smooth), (v) vein cu­a of fore wing interstitial (in T. luteus vein cu­a of fore wing antefurcal), (vi) vein 1r­m of hind wing about 2.0 times longer than vein 2­SC+R (in T. luteus vein 1r­m of hind wing about as long as vein 2­SC+R), (vii) grooves of second metasomal tergite not meeting each other and not reaching second metasomal suture, resulting without a distinct triangular area (in T. luteus grooves of second metasomal tergite reaching second metasomal suture, resulting in a large triangular area).

Figures

FIGURES 7 – 16: Tropobracon shafeei Haider sp. nov., Female. 7. Fore wing; 8. Hind wing; 9. Head, dorsal aspect; 10. Mesosoma; 11. Head, frontal aspect; 12. Metasomal tergites 1 st­ 3 rd; 13. Hind leg; 14. Antenna; 15. Tarsal claws with basal lobes; 16. Ovipositor and ovipositor sheaths. Scale: 1.0 mm.