Erythmelus (Erythmelus) flavovarius ( Walker, 1846 )

Triapitsyn, Serguei V., Berezovskiy, Vladimir V., Hoddle, Mark S. & Morse, Joseph G., 2007, A review of the Nearctic species of Erythmelus (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae), with a key and new additions to the New World fauna, Zootaxa 1641 (1), pp. 1-64 : 47-49

Erythmelus (Erythmelus) flavovarius ( Walker, 1846)

( Figs 67, 68 )

Panthus flavovarius Walker 1846: 52 (lectotype female, designated by Graham 1982: 219 [Hope Entomological Collec- tions, Oxford, England, UK], not examined. Type locality: Unknown [? Ireland]).

Erythmelus flavovarius (Walker) : Graham 1982: 219–220.

Erythmelus (Erythmelus) flavovarius (Walker) : Triapitsyn 2003: 17–21 (taxonomic history, diagnosis, distribution, host associations); Donev 2004: 122–123 (diagnosis, distribution).

Erythmelus goochi Enock 1909: 455 , plate XIII (lectotype female, designated by Graham 1982: 220 [Natural History Museum, London, England, UK], examined. Type locality: Holloway, London, England, UK). Synonymized under E. (E.) flavovarius by Triapitsyn 2003: 17.

Enaesius parvus Soyka 1932: 83 (? holotype female [?lost from Naturhistorisches Museum Wien, Vienna, Austria], not examined. Type locality: Valkenburg, Limburg, Netherlands). Synonymized under E. flavovarius by Graham, 1982: 219.

Erythmelus maculatus Enock : Kryger 1950: 61 (nomen nudum).

Erythmelus (Enaesius) dichromocnemus Novicky 1953: 13 (? holotype female [present depository unknown], not examined. Type locality: an unspecified locality in Poland). Synonymized under E. (E.) flavovarius by Triapitsyn 2003: 17.

Erythmelus empoascae Subba Rao 1966: 192 , 194 (holotype female [?lost from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute , New Delhi, India], not examined. Type locality: [? New] Delhi, India). Syn. n.

Erythmelus (Erythmelus) empoascae Subba Rao : Triapitsyn 2003: 15 (mentioned as member of the flavovarius species group).

Erythmelus spinosus Mathot 1969: 15 (holotype female [Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique, Brussels, Belgium], not examined. Type locality: Rièzes, Hainaut, Belgium). Synonymized under E. (E.) flavovarius by Triapitsyn 2003: 17.

Erythmelus miridiphagus Dozier : Sohati et al. 1989: 1127 (misidentification); Sohati et al. 1992: 515–521 (misidentification).

Erythmelus sp. 2 : Beardsley & Huber 2000: 15 (a short diagnosis, distribution in the Hawaiian Islands).

Material examined. CANADA. PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND, Harrington, 7–21.viii.1989, M.E.M. Smith [1 female, 1 male, CNCI]. ONTARIO, Guelph, University of Guelph Arboretum, 43°32’N 80°13’W, 14.vi.2006, L. Coote [1 female, UCRC]. QUEBEC, Ste. Anne de Bellevue, McDonald College Seed Farm, 31.vii– 10.viii.1987, P.H. Sohati (“ex. Amaranthus retroflexus L. stems with Lygus lineolaris (P. de B.) eggs”) [4 females, 5 males, CNCI]. ENGLAND ( UK). Avon, Bristol, Hallen Wood, 24.vii.1928, J.P. Kryger [1 male, USNM]. FRANCE. ILE DE FRANCE, Sèvres, viii.1975, R.W. Fuester (ex. Lygus rugulipennis Poppius on bean pods) [1 female, 1 male, USNM]. INDIA. DELHI, New Delhi, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, 28°37’51’’N 77°09’50’’E, 220 m, 6.ix.2003, J.M. Heraty [1 female, 1 male, UCRC]. ITALY. CAMPANIA, Portici, 1.iv.1948 (“Ex. shipment of oyster shell scale infested twigs”) [1 female, EMEC]. MEXICO. YUCATÁN, Chichén Itzá, 27.vii.1984, G. Gordh [1 female, UCRC]. SOUTH AFRICA. KWAZULU- NATAL, Pietermaritzburg, Hilton, 29°32’30.7’’S 30°18’18.4’’E, 1131 m, 6–14.iii.2005, V. Kolyada [1 male, UCRC]. TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO. Trinidad Island: Tunapuna, St. John’s Rd., 10°39.37’N 61°23.64’W, 279’, 25.iv.2000, M. Hoddle (on avocado) [1 male, UCRC]. Valencia, 26.iv.2000, M. Hoddle (on avocado) [1 male, UCRC]. UNITED ARAB EMIRATES. SHARJAH, 25.21°N 55.24°E, 1–31.i.2005, A. van Harten [4 females, 11 males, CNCI, UCRC]. USA. ALASKA, Kenai Peninsula Borough, Sterling, 45 m, 23.vii.1993, D. Collet [1 female, UCRC]. FLORIDA: Broward Co., Ft. Lauderdale, Tradewind Park, 19.iv.1992, L. Masner [2 females, CNCI]. Highlands Co., Lake Placid, Archbold Biological Station, 9–22.vi.1987, D.B. Wahl [1 female, CNCI]. HAWAII (Hawaiian Islands), Honolulu Co., Oahu Island: Honolulu: Lyon Arboretum, 19– 21.v.1989, L. Masner [1 female, CNCI]. University of Hawaii campus, Gilmore Hall: 27.iv.1986, L. LeBeck [1 female, CNCI]; 10–13.vii.1986, L. LeBeck [3 females, CNCI]. Waimanalo, University of Hawaii Farm, 21–28.viii.1986, L. LeBeck [1 female, CNCI].

Diagnosis. Member of the flavovarius species group ( Triapitsyn 2003). Both sexes of E. (E.) flavovarius are usually easy to distinguish by the coloration of the midlobe of mesoscutum, which is partly brown (the anterior half or so) and partly yellow (usually) or light brown (the posterior half or so); yellow markings are present also on the lateral lobes of the mesoscutum, the axilla, and the mesopleura, and the base of the gaster (about 1/3 or more) is yellow to light brown. In addition, the female of E. (E.) flavovarius is characterized by the following: antenna ( Fig. 67 ) with all funicular segments longer than wide, F4 usually without longitudinal

sensilla, rarely with 1 longitudinal sensillum, F6 usually with 1 ( Fig. 67 ), but sometimes with 2 longitudinal sensilla (more often in non-European specimens), clava with 5 longitudinal sensilla; forewing ( Fig. 68 ) 4.4– 4.9 x as long as wide, with apical part of blade (about 1/3) more or less evenly setose, and remainder of blade with few setae, longest marginal cilia 1.4–1.7 x greatest forewing width; hind wing 16–18 x as long as wide; ovipositor about 7/10–4/5 length of gaster, barely exserted beyond apical gastral tergum, 1.5–1.6:1 x length of metatibia. The male of E. (E.) flavovarius is similar to the female except for the normal sexually dimorphic features; antennal flagellomeres about as long as scape or a little longer, forewing slightly wider than in female (4.0–4.4 x as long as wide), and genitalia about 3/5–7/10 length of gaster.

Distribution. Canada, India, Mexico, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, United Arab Emirates, and USA (Alaska, Florida, and Hawaii [Hawaiian Islands]) (new records) as well as Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cape Verde Islands, China, Denmark, England ( UK), Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iran,? Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Poland, Romania, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, Thailand, Turkmenistan ( Triapitsyn 2003), Serbia ( Donev 2004), and Ukraine ( Ogloblin 1934).

Hosts. Various Miridae : Adelphocoris lineolatus (Goeze) ( Ogloblin 1934) , Lygus lineolaris (Palisot de Beauvois) and L. rugulipennis Poppius (new records), as well as Asciodema obsoleta (Fieber) , Heterocordylus tibialis (Hahn) , Pilophorus perplexus Douglas & Scott , and Polymerus cognatus (Fieber) ( Triapitsyn 2003) . Examination of the voucher specimens (CNCI) from the studies by Sohati et al. (1989) and Sohati et al. (1992) revealed that the egg parasitoid of the tarnished plant bug, Lygus lineolaris , in Quebec, Canada, is not E. (E.) miridiphagus Dozier but E. (E.) flavovarius .

Comments. Examination by the senior author of the specimens of typical E. (E.) flavovarius , collected by John M. Heraty on the grounds of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in New Delhi, which is the presumed type locality of E. empoascae Subba Rao , confirmed the earlier opinion by Triapitsyn (2003) regarding their conspecificity, hence the above synonymy. The presumed leafhopper host of E. empoascae , indicated by Subba Rao (1966), is almost surely an incorrect record.

Figures

FIGURES 67, 68. Erythmelus (E.) flavovarius (female, Sainte Colombe, Département Gironde, France). 67. Antenna. 68. Forewing. Scale bars = 0.1 mm.